WASHINGTON – United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Singapore Minister of Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong today co-chaired the U.S. – Singapore Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Joint Committee meeting. Ambassador Tai and Minister Gan reviewed ongoing efforts under the U.S. – Singapore FTA Framework and agreed to continue work on shared areas of interest, including environment, labor, and trade facilitation.
During the conversation, the ministers exchanged perspectives on ways to advance supply chain resilience, including the importance of collaborating with trading partners to incentivize a race to the top and aligning labor and environmental protections within trusted networks. Ambassador Tai and Minister Gan also discussed the importance of cooperative efforts in trade both within and beyond the FTA.
The United States and Singapore signed the U.S. – Singapore FTA in 2003, the United States’ first FTA with an Asian nation. Implementation of the U.S. – Singapore FTA began on January 1, 2004. Today’s discussion provided an opportunity to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the U.S. – Singapore FTA and underscored the strength of the bilateral trade and investment relationship between the United States and Singapore.
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