The Singapore Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) and the United States Department of Defense (DoD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Defense Innovation Cooperation during a bilateral meeting between Singaporean Minister for Defence Dr. Ng Eng Hen and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III at the Shangri-La Dialogue 2024 (SLD24). The MoU was signed by Tan Peng Yam, MINDEF’s Chief Defence Scientist, and Douglas A. Beck, Director of the DoD’s Defense Innovation Unit and Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense.
This Defense Innovation MoU enhances bilateral cooperation to adopt and scale commercial technologies that address shared operational challenges faced by both militaries, supporting common strategic objectives. As a result of this MoU, both parties have agreed to launch joint challenges in priority collaboration areas, including shipboard counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) and electromagnetic interference resilience.
“Speaking personally, it is great to be back in Singapore and to be here for the first time in this role. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to see firsthand the incredible dynamism of this country and the singular purpose that Singaporeans bring to delivering impact through public and private partnership – particularly in technology,” said Director Beck.
He continued, “Our alliance is built upon the foundation of mutually beneficial economic and defense cooperation and on our shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and to the free and open international system upon which our mutual prosperity relies. In our own Defense Department, we are working hard under Secretary Austin’s leadership to take the commercial technology sector to the next level, to ensure we are able to leverage technology with the focus, speed, and scale necessary to deter major conflict or win if forced to fight.”
“Our allies and partners are central to this. Initiatives like the ones we are launching with Singapore will help bring the power of our respective tech sectors to bear on our mutual challenges in solving them. I could not ask for better teammates than we’ve had in our Singaporean partners, and I look forward to working with them on making this impact a reality.”
The DoD is represented by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), which spearheads the adoption of dual-use commercial technologies to address warfighter challenges, aiming for strategic impact with speed and scale. Singapore MINDEF is represented by the Future Systems and Technology Directorate, which oversees the master planning and management of MINDEF’s research and development requirements.
Post Image- Permanent Secretary (Defence Development) Mr. Melvyn Ong, Chief Defence Scientist Mr. Tan Peng Yam, and other key Singapore MND and DIU innovation team members. (Image Credit: Defense Innovation Unit)
