On Monday morning (13 Nov), Russian President Vladimir Putin emerged from a jet at Changi Airport. The Russian President was greeted by a local delegation comprising Education Minister Mr Ong Ye Kung and top military officials.
Mr Putin is in Singapore for the 3rd ASEAN-Russia Summit and the 13th East Asia Summit.
Shortly after his arrival, Mr Putin visited President Halimah Yacob at the Istana. The 2 heads of state participated in a short welcome ceremony to mark the former’s first ever visit to Singapore.
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The pair then made their way to Rangoon Road, where a Russian Cultural Centre is slated to be built.
A symbol of Singapore’s growing ties with Russia, the Russian Cultural Centre aims to promote the Russian language and culture. It will host a variety of related exhibitions and performances. The centre will also house a Russian Orthodox Church.
Ministers, reporters and other guests gathered to watch Mdm Halimah and Mr Putin unveil the centre’s cornerstone.
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A golden plaque affixed to front of the stone read, in both English and Russian:
THE RUSSIAN CULTURAL CENTRE THAT HOUSES THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH WILL BE ERECTED HERE.
The administrator of a group of Russian parishes in East and South-east Asia, Archbishop Sergiy of Solnechnogorsk, then blessed the cornerstone.
Mr Putin remarked later in the day that the centre would serve as a building block for a “more substantive relationship between our countries”.
After the ceremony, both presidents headed back to the Istana for an evening banquet.
Mdm Halimah stepped onto stage to give the opening toast. She mentioned that despite differences between the countries like size and availability of resources, both have enjoyed a “long-standing friendship”.
She added some flavour to her speech with a Russian proverb about friendship: For a friend, 7 miles is not too far.
Unfortunately, Singapore and Russia aren’t just 7 miles apart — we’re 4,100 miles apart.
Taking his turn on stage, Mr Putin agreed that ties between the two states have strengthened over the years. He also emphasised the importance of mutual trust, saying:
You often hear in Singapore that among friends, even water runs sweet as honey, and mutual trust is the foundation of friendship, development and progress.
Everyone at the banquet later raised a toast to the continuing friendship between the countries. Some Internet users cheekily pointed out that while everyone raised a glass of wine, Mdm Halimah raised a cup of orange juice.
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This year also happens to be the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and Russia.
In the last decade, bilateral trade has risen from $1.9 billion to $7.4 billion.
There are currently 690 Russian companies in Singapore across a range of sectors. The number is set to increase with Russian cyber-security firm Group IB’s plans set up its headquarters in Singapore early next year.
Featured image from Facebook.
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