PM Wong to make first visits to Middle East from Oct 18 to 22

Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong will make official visits to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from Oct 18 to 22, marking his first visits to the Middle East as Prime Minister.

The visit to Qatar will take place from Oct 18 to 20, while the visit to UAE is from Oct 20 to 22, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement on Saturday (Oct 17).

"The visits will provide a timely opportunity for Singapore to exchange views with regional leaders on developments in the Middle East, reaffirm our support for dialogue and diplomacy, and strengthen cooperation with Qatar and the UAE in areas of mutual interest, particularly energy security and economic resilience," PMO added.

In Qatar, PM Wong will call on Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani. The two leaders will co-chair the ninth Qatar-Singapore High-Level Joint Committee (HLJC), which is the primary platform for advancing cooperation between Qatar and Singapore.

Earlier in September, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan was in Qatar to co-chair the third iteration of the Qatar-Singapore Implementation Monitoring Mechanism (IMM) with Qatar's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi.

The IMM is a platform for the two countries to follow up on bilateral initiatives in the areas of information and communications technology, security, business, legal cooperation and sustainability. It was established under the Qatar-Singapore HLJC.

During that visit, the two foreign ministers reviewed the progress of bilateral initiatives, and identified opportunities to further deepen cooperation between the two countries.

PM Wong to visit Abu Dhabi, Dubai

While in the UAE, PM Wong will visit Abu Dhabi and Dubai, PMO said.

He will call on Abu Dhabi President Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and meet with Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

In Dubai, the prime minister will call on Dubai's Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and meet with Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

He is also scheduled to meet with overseas Singaporeans at receptions in Doha and Dubai.

The prime minister will be accompanied by his wife, Loo Tze Lui, Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Energy, Trade and Industry (Energy and Industry) Dr Tan See Leng, Minister of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Home Affairs Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry and the Prime Minister’s Office.

Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong will be Singapore's Acting Prime Minister during PM Wong's absence.

总理兼财政部长黄循财将于10月18日至22日对卡塔尔和阿拉伯联合酋长国（阿联酋）进行正式访问，这将是他作为总理首次访问中东。

总理办公室（PMO）周六（10月17日）发表声明称，对卡塔尔的访问将于10月18日至20日进行，而对阿联酋的访问将于10月20日至22日进行。

总理办公室补充说：“此次访问将为新加坡提供一个及时的机会，与中东地区领导人就中东局势发展交换意见，重申我们对对话和外交的支持，并加强与卡塔尔和阿联酋在共同关心的领域，特别是能源安全和经济韧性方面的合作。”

在卡塔尔，黄之锋首相将拜会埃米尔谢赫·塔米姆·本·哈马德·阿勒萨尼。两位领导人将共同主持第九届卡塔尔-新加坡高级别联合委员会（HLJC）会议，该委员会是推进卡塔尔和新加坡合作的主要平台。

9月初，外交部长维维安·巴拉克里希南博士在卡塔尔与卡塔尔外交国务大臣苏丹·本·萨阿德·穆莱基共同主持卡塔尔-新加坡执行监测机制（IMM）第三次迭代。

信息与通信技术合作机制（IMM）是两国跟进信息通信技术、安全、商业、法律合作和可持续发展等领域双边倡议的平台。该机制是在卡塔尔-新加坡高级别联合委员会框架下设立的。

访问期间，两国外长回顾了双边合作项目的进展情况，并探讨了进一步深化两国合作的机会。

黄之锋总理将访问阿布扎比和迪拜

总理办公室表示，黄英贤总理在阿联酋期间将访问阿布扎比和迪拜。

他将拜会阿布扎比总统谢赫·穆罕默德·本·扎耶德·阿勒纳哈扬，并会见阿布扎比王储兼阿布扎比执行委员会主席谢赫·哈立德·本·穆罕默德·本·扎耶德·阿勒纳哈扬。

在迪拜，总理将拜会迪拜副总统兼总理谢赫·穆罕默德·本·拉希德·阿勒马克图姆，并会见迪拜王储、副总理兼国防部长谢赫·哈姆丹·本·穆罕默德·本·拉希德·阿勒马克图姆。

他还计划在多哈和迪拜的招待会上与海外新加坡人会面。

总理将携夫人卢子蕾、外交部长维文·巴拉克里希南博士、能源、贸易及工业部长（能源及工业）陈诗玲博士、外交部兼内政部政务部长朱卡纳因·阿卜杜勒·拉希姆，以及外交部、能源、贸易及工业部和总理公署的官员一同前往。

在黄英贤总理缺席期间，副总理颜金勇将担任新加坡代总理。