Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin, Minister of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports, attended the Shangri-La Dialogue, on June 4-5. This was his first visit to Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue, the most important inter-governmental security forum of the Asia-Pacific region held annually in Singapore.

During his visit, Federal Councillor Parmelin also met his counterpart Singaporean Minister of Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen. The two Ministers underlined the excellent bilateral relations between our countries and both emphasized the potential for further collaboration in international cooperation and multi-lateral organizations such as ASEAN and the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM). The key role of facilitators that both countries can undertake when international disputes arise was also highlighted as one of the fields shared by both Singapore and Switzerland.

Federal Councillor Parmelin also attended the official dinner at the Istana offered by Singapore President Dr. Tony Tan. During his visit, Federal Councillor Parmelin had the opportunity to have special meetings with some other of his counter-parts, as from Canada, India, Republic of Korea  and the United Kingdom.

Before returning to Switzerland, Mr. Parmelin met with the Swiss Community at the Ambassador’s residence.