Tri-nation event explored regional cooperation and Britain’s evolving Indo-Pacific strategy.
A conference on strengthening the United Kingdom’s engagement with the Indo-Pacific region was held at King’s College London today, drawing partners, diplomats and academic experts from across the region. The event was jointly organised by the High Commissions of Australia, India, and Singapore, and featured discussions on how global fragmentation is reshaping international cooperation.
UK Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Sema Malhotra, delivered the keynote address, emphasising the importance of sustained British engagement as geopolitical competition intensifies. Professor Danny Quah from the National University of Singapore spoke in two panels, outlining how economically vulnerable small states in the Indo-Pacific were increasingly challenged by eroding multilateralism and the simultaneous “America” and “China” shocks. He proposed that pathfinder multilateralism—cooperation built on aligned incentives rather than rigid power structures—could offer a pragmatic way forward.
Image by: Singapore High Commission in London and Embassy to Ireland and Iceland
During the post-lunch session, Singapore’s High Commissioner Ng Teck Hean joined Indian High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami and Australian High Commissioner Stephen Smith in a panel moderated by former foreign policy adviser John Bew. The High Commissioners exchanged views on the implications of a fractured global landscape and described how they continued to work with the UK Government as it refined its Indo-Pacific strategy.
Singapore’s delegation included Deputy High Commissioner Nicola, Second Secretary Mervyn, and MFA officers Clarissa and Claudine. The conference also acknowledged Australian High Commissioner Stephen Smith, who is approaching the end of his posting in London, with the organisers expressing appreciation for his contributions.
Source: Singapore High Commission in London and Embassy to Ireland and Iceland
