Red Sea attacks expected to have ‘limited’ impact on Singapore’s critical supplies: Ng Eng Hen

THE current conflict in the Red Sea is expected to have a “limited” impact on Singapore, as the majority of the nation’s critical supplies – such as food and pharmaceuticals – do not pass through the shipping route, or are delivered by air freight, said Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen in Parliament on Tuesday (Jan 9).

“Our local manufacturers also seem to have sufficient spare inventory to hedge against supply disruptions, though they are worried about increases in business costs,” he added.

Ng was responding to a question from People’s Action Party MP Desmond Choo, who asked whether the ongoing tensions in the Red Sea will have an impact on Singapore’s maritime security. Choo also asked if the Singapore Armed Forces will contribute to global efforts to secure the Red Sea.

Since last November, Yemen’s Houthi rebels have been attacking merchant vessels in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait off Yemen, in an offensive against Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.

The Red Sea is a passage to Israel’s port facilities and the Suez Canal – the shortest maritime route between Asia and Europe and used by 12 per cent of global trade. This represents 30 per cent of all global container traffic and over US$1 trillion worth of goods a year.

Prior to the attacks, around 60 ships passed through the major trade route each day, noted Ng in his reply, but this number has dropped by about a third in recent weeks.

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Singapore-registered ships have thus been affected, with the number of daily transits through the Red Sea approximately halved, he said.

But while the impact on Singapore’s critical supplies is expected to be limited, “it is in (Singapore’s) interests... to join cause with the international community, to protect and ensure that key slots around the world remain open, especially if threatened by unlawful acts by non-state actors”, said Ng.

To that end, Singapore will participate in Operation Prosperity Guardian by Combined Task Force 153 of the 39-member Combined Maritime Forces. The initiative seeks to keep the Red Sea shipping route open and safe, said Ng. Amendment note: An earlier version of this article referred to the global security initiative in the Red Sea as Operation Prosperity Garden. It has been changed to reflect the correct name.