Vivian Balakrishnan to visit Islamabad on Oct 30 to explore new areas of cooperation

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan will make a one-day visit to Islamabad, Pakistan on Friday (Oct 30).

The visit comes on the back of a two-day visit to Jakarta, Indonesia, where he and Indonesian Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir announced that the two countries are looking into establishing a joint task force to hold companies accountable for forest fires which have caused transboundary haze.

Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement that Dr Balakrishnan's visit to Islamabad is at the invitation of Pakistan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar.

"Minister Balakrishnan’s visit to Pakistan reaffirms the longstanding friendship between Singapore and Pakistan, which is underpinned by mutual respect and warm people-to-people ties," the ministry added. 

The two countries mark their 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year. 

In a letter to his counterpart Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Aug 24, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said that there is scope for the two countries to expand their cooperation in trade facilitation, digital economy, people-to-people exchanges, and capacity building.

Dr Balakrishnan's upcoming visit will provide the opportunity to deepen relations and explore new areas of cooperation, including disaster management, innovation and research, and education, MFA said.

During the visit, Dr Balakrishnan will meet Senator Dar. They will then hold a joint press conference.

The foreign minister is also scheduled to call on Pakistan Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, and Pakistan Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, who has been involved in talks with Tehran.

Dr Balakrishnan will also visit the National Center of Artificial Intelligence at the National University of Sciences and Technology to understand Pakistan’s advancements in artificial intelligence.

He will be accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Trade volume between the two countries stood at approximately US$1.19 billion (S$1.51 billion) as at January 2025.

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