SINGAPORE - Keeping an open link with Israel, despite disagreement over the extent of its military response in Gaza, has been essential for Singapore to deliver much-needed aid and supplies to the stricken Palestinian enclave, said Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on March 25.

This was a key reason why he had engaged Israeli leaders during a 10-day working visit to the Middle East from March 15 to 24, he said.

“If we want, especially now and in the future, to step up humanitarian assistance, we need Israel’s cooperation,” he told reporters in Singapore after returning from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.

During his visit, Dr Balakrishnan said, he had expressed clearly and unambiguously Singapore’s views, including the Republic’s concerns over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and how Israel’s response to Hamas’ attack on Oct 7, 2023, has now gone too far.

Describing the trip to the Middle East as a “necessary” one, Dr Balakrishnan said another objective was to consult and get a “direct download” from Singapore’s Arab partners in the region on the conflict.

“I’m very glad that they gave us full access at senior levels (and) gave us very candid, open views,” he added during the interview at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tanglin.

Dr Balakrishnan started his trip on March 15 with a stop in Doha in Qatar, where ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas are being held.

He then visited Jordan, where he witnessed the arrival of Singapore’s third tranche of aid, which is being delivered to Gaza via airdrops, before heading to Ramallah in the occupied West Bank to speak to leaders of the Palestinian Authority, which lost control of Gaza in 2007. His final stops were in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, Cairo in Egypt and Riyadh, where he met Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Zayed Al Nahyan, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Farhan Al Saud.

Dr Balakrishnan said every single country in the Middle East has its own strategic calculus and national interests to protect, and they do not all see the Israel-Hamas conflict in exactly the same way.

Even so, there were key points of agreement, namely, the need to stop the violence in Gaza, the need to release hostages, and the need for the immediate delivery of humanitarian assistance at a level far beyond what has been made available so far.

He said the airdropping of supplies by the Republic of Singapore Air Force is continuing and several missions have been carried out. Additional relief from Singapore has also reached Jordan, and Dr Balakrishnan said he is grateful for the ongoing efforts in the Republic to raise funds, and collect and pack more aid.

Still, he called again for the opening of more land-based routes, so more supplies can be trucked into Gaza. He said Singapore is continuing to send supplies to the region in the hope that this will happen.

“If you consider the state that Gaza is in now, most of it destroyed, supplies depleted, you’re starting with a deficit... You need hundreds, if not more than 1,000 trucks, a day to flow. The airdrops are a temporary emergency procedure,” he added.

Almost all the humanitarian aid going into Gaza, which is under a near-total blockade, is now delivered via Egypt’s Rafah crossing and the Israeli crossing of Kerem Shalom. But it is a fraction of what was going in by land before the Israel-Hamas war broke out.

Dr Balakrishnan said Singapore’s plan is to continue working with Egypt and Jordan to send aid into Gaza. “We need those links and to work closely with our Israeli friends, so that they can let it through,” he added.

The minister cautioned against overinflating the Republic’s importance in resolving the conflict. But he also said the recently concluded trip is an example of how Singapore is able to maintain constructive and respectful relations with the various parties in the Middle East. “We are not going to change the trajectory of war and peace in the Middle East. That’s beyond us. But we are still able to say what we believe, do what is helpful, engage partners who may in fact be on opposite sides,” he added.

He said Singapore will step up its interactions with the Palestinian Authority to help the governing body with governance and rebuilding in the immediate aftermath of the ongoing war in Gaza.

In the short term, Dr Balakrishnan said he remains pessimistic, noting how conflicts are often prolonged for the parties involved to secure more leverage at the negotiating table. He also noted that ceasefire talks in Doha are in a delicate phase.

“Every day, I hope and pray for a breakthrough, and every single day makes a difference to (the number of) lives lost on the ground.” He added: “This is a point that I made to the Israelis as well – that beyond a certain point, you’re actually storing up problems for the future. That cannot be in your own interest.”

For parts of his trip, Dr Balakrishnan was accompanied by five MPs – Mr Alex Yam, Ms Nadia Ahmad Samdin, Ms Rachel Ong and Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim from the governing People’s Action Party, and Mr Gerald Giam of the opposition Workers’ Party.

The delegation’s make-up, Dr Balakrishnan said, was meant to reflect Singapore’s diversity and unity.

He also urged Singaporeans not to take for granted the peace, security and harmony here, and in South-east Asia.

“Have no illusions, (peace in Gaza) is going to be a very long and tortured journey. So, for Singapore, let’s just reflect on ourselves and what we can do in our own small way, and protect our own precious, fragile nation.”