US Vice-President Kamala Harris Arrives In Singapore On 22 Aug
Kamala Harris made history by becoming America’s first female vice-president back in November last year.
Now, she’s on her first visit outside of the US since being sworn into office.
On Sunday (22 Aug) morning, Ms Harris arrived at Paya Lebar Air Base for her 3-day visit to Singapore.
This is part of her official visit to Southeast Asia and she will leave Singapore for Vietnam on Tuesday (24 Aug).
Kamala Harris arrives in Singapore on 1st official Asia trip
At 10.50am today, the US Vice-President arrived on Air Force Two accompanied by over 20 staff and security officers, reported The Straits Times (ST).
The jet reportedly stopped off in Alaska and in Japan to refuel, while Ms Harris remained on board.
A delegation including Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan received Ms Harris at Paya Lebar Air Base.
Ms Harris is here on her first official visit to Asia and will begin her engagements on Monday with a meeting with President Halimah Yacob at the Istana.
She will then have a meeting and joint press conference with Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong.
Orchid to be named in her honour
The US vice-president will have an orchid named in her honour in a ceremony at the Istana.
She will also make a visit to Changi Naval Base where she will board the US Littoral Combat Ship USS Tulsa, reported Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
The ship is currently here as part of a multilateral exercise.
Then on Tuesday (24 Aug), Ms Harris will deliver a policy speech and take part in a roundtable discussion with the business community, which include Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong.
Following that, Ms Harris will depart Singapore for Vietnam in the afternoon for the second leg of her Asia trip.
Visit signals America’s commitment to Southeast Asia
The White House said Ms Harris’ visit to Southeast Asia signals America’s commitment to the region.
A White House official told Reuters that the agenda will be on:
- defending international rules in the South China Sea
- strengthening US regional leadership
- expanding security cooperation in the region
Her trip follows closely after US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin’s Southeast Asia tour where he stopped in Singapore, Vietnam, and the Philippines last month.
According to CNA, the visit was decided after PM Lee extended an invite earlier on.
Hope Ms Harris has a good visit
During a virtual Aspen Security Forum 2 weeks back, PM Lee said Vice-President Kamala Harris’ visit to Singapore is “greatly valued”.
It certainly is an honour for a small country like Singapore to welcome Ms Harris.
We certainly hope she has a good visit and will enjoy her time here in our island city, of course, while getting the important business done.
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Featured image adapted from Twitter and Vivian Balakrishnan on Facebook.
