Mr Teo noted that Singapore sits at a focal point of international shipping routes. Close to 90,000 ships pass the Straits of Malacca and Singapore each year, accounting for a third of global trade.
“Our new submarines will enhance the Republic of Singapore Navy’s ability to fulfil her mission of protecting the sea lines of communication in our region,” said Mr Teo, who is also Coordinating Minister for National Security.
“All countries stand to benefit when our seas are safe and secure.”
He added that the fourth submarine is the “product of the longstanding and strong relationship” between Singapore and Germany.
The Singapore navy’s first missile boats in the 1970s were built in Germany, and it was one of the countries where Singapore officers were sent for submarine training.
“While today marks the launch of the last in this series of Invincible-class submarines, our partnership will continue. tkMS will continue to provide technical training and in-service support for the RSN and ST Engineering to operationalise these boats,” Mr Teo said.
The Senior Minister added that the launch of Inimitable marked a “new era” in Singapore’s submarine journey.
“To the crew of Inimitable, I encourage you to live up to your boat’s name – to be matchless and unrivalled in the execution of your duty,” he added.
“And to our new generation of submariners, I exhort you to safeguard Singapore’s peace and security with tenacity and distinction, just as your submarine pioneers did before you.”
Ahead of the ceremony, Mr Teo and Mr Heng met Mr Pistorius. They expressed Singapore’s appreciation for Germany’s support for the Singapore Armed Forces’ training in Germany since 2009, and for the bilateral collaboration on the Invincible-class submarine programme and training.
“Both sides reaffirmed the strong and substantive defence relations between Singapore and Germany, which has grown significantly across multiple domains,” said MINDEF.
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