Singapore has agreed to become the thirty-fourth country to join the military coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS).
After the agreement was announced on Monday, November 3, Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Teo Chee Hean acknowledged that the efforts against ISIS in Iraq and Syria will “[contribute] directly to Singapore’s own security.”
According to Channel NewsAsia, Singapore will be “contributing [military] assets that were once deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.” Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) fought al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and view fighting ISIS as an extension of that same effort–an outworking of the same purpose against terror.
Singapore Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen said SAF will make “sustainable and useful” contributions to the coalition. He made clear that these would be within SAF’s “means,” but will not include SAF boots on the ground in Iraq or Syria. SAF assets “will operate out of neighboring countries instead.”
On March 19, 2003, The Heritage Foundation listed Singapore as one of the expanding number of countries–the “Coalition of the Willing”–that were aligning with George W. Bush in efforts to remove Saddam Hussein from power. Singapore was one of 54 countries to join the coalition.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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