Polish President Duda concludes state visit to Singapore to reaffirm bilateral and business ties
SINGAPORE: Polish President Andrzej Duda on Friday (Jun 13) concluded a three-day state visit to Singapore, which marked a significant milestone in ties between the two nations.
He is the first Polish president to visit Singapore in over 20 years.
Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the visit reaffirms the growing ties between the two countries.
Mr Duda was received by Singapore's President Tharman Shanmugaratnam at Parliament House on Thursday, where he inspected a guard of honour contingent.
The two presidents spoke about collaboration in areas like port and logistics development, agri-food exports to Singapore, and sustainable energy. They also discussed global geopolitical and security developments.
At a state banquet hosted in Mr Duda's honour, Mr Tharman said bilateral trade has grown significantly, and there is much more that both sides can do to capitalise on each other's roles as hubs within their respective regions.
"There is a Polish saying that goes 'grain by grain, the measure will be filled',' said President Tharman.
'Step by step, we will build a meaningful relationship. And that epitomises the way we are going about our strategic relationship.'
Mr Duda expressed Poland's intent to deepen its engagement in the region.
'My visit is a confirmation of Poland's growing presence in Southeast Asia and its interest in developing comprehensive relations with the countries of the region,' he added.
'Singapore has long been a key partner for Poland in this region, and we will wish for our relations to rise to a new, much higher level.'
The two leaders encouraged businesses to explore investments in each other's countries.
There are around 170 Polish companies in Singapore, while Singapore also invests significantly in Poland's transport and logistics sector.
Since the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA) came into force in 2019, bilateral goods trade between Singapore and Poland has grown by 50 per cent, reaching a high of nearly S$1.7 billion (US$1.3 billion) last year.
BUSINESS TIES
During the Singapore-Poland Business Forum on Friday, Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu highlighted the importance of like-minded partners like Singapore and Poland in creating opportunities for growth.
Both nations should also bolster the rules-based trading system through economic agreements, she added.
'Poland and Singapore share robust and growing bilateral economic relations, anchored by EUSFTA,' she said.
"Creating new avenues for growth and innovation is another important way to economic success. Singapore and Poland have complementary strengths and needs in sectors such as food and digital technology, creating scope for new partnerships.'
Mr Duda also identified several areas for future collaboration, including the digital economy, food security, infrastructure and logistics.
'Singapore's logistics and port operators are global leaders. There is definitely room for partnerships in warehousing, freight and trade facilitation between Europe and Asia,' he said.
During his trip, Mr Duda also visited ST Engineering and port operator PSA International.
NEW POLISH PRESIDENT
Mr Duda and his wife, First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda, were also presented with a new orchid hybrid – the Genus Andrzej and Agata Duda – at the National Orchid Garden.
Mr Duda's visit comes near the end of his second five-year term, which is set to conclude in August. He will be succeeded by historian Karol Nawrocki.
Polish Ambassador to Singapore Tadeusz Chomicki said he expects continuity from the new president for foreign policies regarding Asia and Singapore.
'They come from the same political background. When it comes to foreign policy, our activities, especially in the Asia Pacific region, there is no difference between the parties,' he told CNA938.
'We all see big opportunities and potential, between Poland and a number of countries in Asia.'
Before arriving in Singapore, the Polish president was in Malaysia for a three-day official visit. Mr Duda described his tour as an effort to encourage potential regional investors to look to Poland.
'Poland has witnessed rapid development in the last years. The Polish economy is getting more robust and strong,' he said.
'We are proponents of the most open trade and the possible most open way to transport goods. I would like Poland to have the best possible relations, to have as many contacts as possible in the trade sphere.'
ON UKRAINE AND MILITARY SPENDING
During a wide-ranging interview with CNA, Mr Duda said his country is extremely concerned about the war in neighbouring Ukraine.
'Looking at our historical experiences with Russia, we're afraid of a potential Russian aggression. Our obvious response was to … modernise our armed forces, and we decided to increase our defence spending,' he said.
He added the nation is spending 4.7 per cent of its gross domestic product on defence, well above the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) current guideline of 2 per cent.
He added that China could play a significant role in ending the bloodshed.
'China is such a big superpower that it is able to have an impact on … Russia. It is able to be the stabiliser. (Beijing) can contribute to ending Russian aggression against Ukraine… to finding a peaceful solution. I count very much on China playing a creative and positive role here,' he said.
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