PM Wong to visit Timor-Leste in first for Singapore prime minister

[DILI] Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will make an official visit to Timor-Leste from Thursday (Jul 2) to Friday. It will be his inaugural trip there and the first visit by a Singapore head of government to the nation.

His visit reciprocates Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao’s official four-day trip to the city-state in July 2025, the Singapore Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement on Wednesday.

President Jose Ramos-Horta was in Singapore in May for the Shangri-La Dialogue, at which he delivered the special address.

During this visit, PM Wong will call on him, and be presented the Order of Timor-Leste (Grand Collar), in recognition of Singapore’s contributions to the young country’s national development and support for its Asean membership.

The award, Timor-Leste’s highest honour, also recognises PM Wong’s personal commitment to Singapore’s capacity-building packages for its South-east Asian neighbour.

Established in 2009, the award recognises Timorese nationals and foreigners for making significant contributions to the country.

Both countries’ prime ministers will meet and witness the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of bilateral consultations.

These discussions will provide a regular dialogue mechanism for both sides to review and explore new areas of cooperation, as well as exchange views on regional and international developments.

They will also hold a joint press conference, followed by a state banquet lunch hosted by Gusmao.

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PM Wong will meet Singaporeans in Timor-Leste at a reception in Dili on Thursday. Some 50 to 60 Singaporeans reside in the country, with the community comprising mainly business people and missionaries.

Longstanding bilateral ties

Singapore has actively supported the young country’s development for about two decades, going back to its pre-independence days.

Timor-Leste is Asean’s newest member and the youngest country in Asia, having emerged from decades of conflict.

Singapore was one of the first countries to contribute to the International Force East Timor in August 1999.

As part of international peacekeeping efforts there between 1999 and 2012, the Republic sent over a thousand military personnel, including medical teams and combat peacekeepers, along with equipment such as landing ship tanks and utility helicopters.

The Singapore Police Force also dispatched officers to a United Nations civilian police contingent, and helped set up the East Timor Police Service in 2000.

Singapore set up its resident embassy in the Timorese capital of Dili in April 2024, and appointed in March this year its first resident Singapore ambassador, Teo Lay Cheng. She was Singapore’s ambassador to Cambodia from 2021 to 2026.

The rotating Asean chairmanship returns to Singapore next year, and Timor-Leste has expressed its aspiration to chair the South-east Asian alliance in 2029, having gained full membership to the bloc in 2025.

Development support

Timor-Leste applied for Asean membership in 2011 and underwent a lengthy process to prove itself ready.

It was granted observer status in 2022 and officially admitted as the grouping’s 11th member in October 2025.

In 2022, Singapore launched the Singapore-Timor-Leste Asean Readiness Support (Stars) package to train Timorese officials in, among others, effective participation at Asean meetings and how to build capacity in the education space.

An enhanced package was launched during Gusmao’s official visit in 2025.

Running from July 2025 to December 2028, it comprises programmes to develop human capital, such as a high-level leadership programme, postgraduate scholarships and training in specific areas including international law and vocational education.

To date, more than 1,300 Timorese officials have undergone courses under the Singapore Cooperation Programme – mainly in the areas of finance, public administration and language and communication skills.

PM Wong will be accompanied on the trip by his wife Loo Tze Lui and Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, as well as officials from the PMO and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During PM Wong’s absence, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong will be acting prime minister.