Singapore ramps up pro-Israel rhetoric, accuses Iran and 'proxies' of terror attacks

The Singapore government has doubled down on its pro-Israel rhetoric despite criticism from Malaysian politicians over recent comments regarding Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz, now suggesting it has faced security risks since the start of the US-Israel aggression against Tehran.

Rather than acknowledging that Iran was attacked on Feb 28, Singapore's minister in charge of national security, K Shanmugam, yesterday accused Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its proxies of launching attacks on Israel and Gulf states, as well as targeting US and Jewish institutions in the West.

"These proxies are not confined to the Middle East. This is something we are watching closely," said Shanmugam, adding that there have been "Hamas operatives" in neighbouring countries.

It comes days after his Cabinet colleague, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, came under fire over comments criticising Iran's decision to impose limits on the Strait of Hormuz as it defends against the US-Israeli bombing campaign, which has killed thousands and displaced millions of civilians across Iran and the Middle East.

Balakrishnan's reasoning that Singapore's decision not to negotiate with Iran for safe passage of ships in the Strait of Hormuz was due to its "principled stand" to abide by international law was met with widespread condemnation, including from Singapore social media users who accused him of hypocrisy.

"Stop using the word 'principled' to describe a policy that is, at its core, interest-based because interest-based foreign policy is legitimate, but it does not get to wear the sarong of principleness. You wear skirt better lah Vivian. Your name is already halfway there," said a post on a Singapore-focused Facebook page that has since gone viral.

This was followed by pictures showing a kippah-wearing Balakrishnan in deep prayer at the Western Wall during a visit to the sacred Jewish site in 2022, as well as images of him being welcomed by Benjamin Netanyahu last year.

Singapore's stance on the latest war in the Middle East has revived an old theory that Singapore's existential threat is identical to Israel's, both aligned with the US and situated among large Muslim populations.

Sandwiched between its giant neighbours Indonesia and Malaysia, both with majority Muslim populations vocally opposed to Israel, Singapore is one of the few countries with close military and diplomatic ties to Israel. Between 2018 and 2022, Singapore imported arms worth a total of US$73 million from Israel.

The city-state is also modelled on Israel's security and defence system, including mandatory military training for its citizens.