Singapore participates in Operation Prosperity Guardian (OPG), a naval task force formed by the United States and other countries to secure vital sea routes.
Dr Ng said last month that Singapore: We have a team of planners at our headquarters who work with international partners to develop plans.
It will also deploy a team from the Republic of Singapore Naval Information Fusion Center to support intelligence sharing and engagement activities with the commercial shipping community, as well as a senior national representative to the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) in Bahrain.
In a separate written response on Monday, Dr. Ng said that such international efforts to ensure major maritime routes such as the Red Sea remain open and secure for the free flow of trade He said it was in Singapore’s interest to participate.
He reiterated that the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) was not involved in the series of attacks by the US and UK against Houthi targets in Yemen, adding that the attacks were not linked to Operation Prosperity Guardian.
The defense minister also called on the Houthis to stop their illegal attacks in the Red Sea.
French medical team on board
In a written response to a separate parliamentary question, Dr Ng also provided an update on the two-man SAF team aboard the French Armed Forces (FAF) ship FS Dixmude.
The helicopter transport ship is a reconfigured hospital ship.
The two – Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) (Dr) Nazirul Hanan Abdul Aziz and Military Expert 3 (ME3) Jimmy Woo Ying Min – are part of Singapore’s ongoing efforts to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza. He was on board this ship as a.
“In collaboration with FAF and other international partners, they provided medical aid and post-operative nursing care to civilian victims in the Gaza Strip, some of whom suffered injuries such as amputations, broken bones and infections. This includes oncological and trauma patients who have sustained injuries,” Dr. Ng said.
The two men completed their deployment on January 27th, when their ship departed from Egypt.
“SAF continues to closely monitor the situation in the region and assess how it can further contribute in humanitarian assistance to Gaza,” the defense minister said.