Good primer on SG-Israel military and political relations from an outsider perspective. There are however a few things that can be elaborated on or corrected in this piece.
If that stretch of ECP leading from Changi Airport to the CBD area is meant to be an emergency runway for the RSAF, it's the first I've heard of it and quite unlikely because the central divider separating traffic going in opposite directions is actually fixed metal and concrete. The only other piece of public roadway that is indeed explicitly meant for RSAF emergency usage in times of war would be Lim Chu Kang Road all the way in the western bit of Singapore. There's plenty of video footage online.
The Singapore Armed Forces is basically at its core a cloned copy of the Israeli Armed Forces, minus the bit about equal conscription of both sexes (Singapore does not conscript females though they can sign on as full-time regulars, Israel does both). An interesting anecdote has it that the Israeli military officers sent to Singapore to train up its first batch of officer cadets and set up SAFTI (Singapore's equivalent to West Point) had to have no Israeli markings on their uniforms, and that if their presence was ever caught on by anyone in public or the media they would be explained away as "Mexicans" due to their swarthy tanned exteriors.
Israeli-SG defence cooperation is deep and significant in several key areas. For instance, Singapore's armored force was first built up in 1969 with some 72 French-built AMX-13 light tanks bought from Israel two years prior. For a country that first became independent only four years ago in 1965, Singapore became the first military in the Indo-Malayan archipelago to have an armored force, a huge deal back then as it is now today. Malaysia would not get their first proper tank till the late 2000s when they bought Polish tanks that are modeled after the Russian T72 tank. This is all the more significant when you realise that even the British balked at selling Singapore its Centurion tank in 1970, wondering why would an island-state that was formerly its colony, freshly independent under acrimonious conditions, and only recently in the thick of regional conflict such as Konfrontasi and the Malayan Emergency need main battle tanks for its defence.
A large part of Singapore's air defence network on the ground is also Israeli (SPYDER). In the air the RSAF equips Israeli-made Python 4/5 air to air missiles on its F-16s; these are deemed more capable than US Sidewinder missiles. Singapore's airborne early warning is now based off the Gulfstream G550 business jet using an Israeli radar system produced by IAI/Elta. The first military drone publicly known to be used and operated by Singapore is also an Israeli model called the Heron.
Even for naval defence, Israel was pivotal in providing Singapore with weapons that allowed it to outclass anything regional militaries had for decades. The RSN was the first navy in Southeast Asia to have naval missile capabilities back in 1968 when it equipped its new Sea Wolf-class missile gunboats with Israeli Gabriel missiles. The latest version of this missile (Blue Spear) was selected last year to replace the US Harpoon antiship missile in RSN service onboard its six Formidable-class frigates, which are some of the most powerful surface ship assets in any Southeast Asian/Pacific navies barring the US and China.
Bottomline is, without Israeli military advice and cooperation, Singapore's very existence as an independent country in 2024 might not have been a reality.
Singapore is "malleable" in more ways than one, not all of them excusable in humanistic terms. so let's stop blaming Israelis for Lee's imperfect calculations in inviting the country's long, secret love affair with Israel. The problems with EL Al "landing rights" and even with Singapore's new "Israel has gone too far" rhetoric are justified and understandable as examples of the calculated gyrations of LKY's still-fundamentally illiberal, increasingly Orwellian society. Its apologists shouldn't blame that mania for control on Israel's interests, intentions, or software.
Good primer on SG-Israel military and political relations from an outsider perspective. There are however a few things that can be elaborated on or corrected in this piece.
If that stretch of ECP leading from Changi Airport to the CBD area is meant to be an emergency runway for the RSAF, it's the first I've heard of it and quite unlikely because the central divider separating traffic going in opposite directions is actually fixed metal and concrete. The only other piece of public roadway that is indeed explicitly meant for RSAF emergency usage in times of war would be Lim Chu Kang Road all the way in the western bit of Singapore. There's plenty of video footage online.
https://youtu.be/vR6yffOLq6w?si=7B0y2DfMsbEee2XJ
The Singapore Armed Forces is basically at its core a cloned copy of the Israeli Armed Forces, minus the bit about equal conscription of both sexes (Singapore does not conscript females though they can sign on as full-time regulars, Israel does both). An interesting anecdote has it that the Israeli military officers sent to Singapore to train up its first batch of officer cadets and set up SAFTI (Singapore's equivalent to West Point) had to have no Israeli markings on their uniforms, and that if their presence was ever caught on by anyone in public or the media they would be explained away as "Mexicans" due to their swarthy tanned exteriors.
Israeli-SG defence cooperation is deep and significant in several key areas. For instance, Singapore's armored force was first built up in 1969 with some 72 French-built AMX-13 light tanks bought from Israel two years prior. For a country that first became independent only four years ago in 1965, Singapore became the first military in the Indo-Malayan archipelago to have an armored force, a huge deal back then as it is now today. Malaysia would not get their first proper tank till the late 2000s when they bought Polish tanks that are modeled after the Russian T72 tank. This is all the more significant when you realise that even the British balked at selling Singapore its Centurion tank in 1970, wondering why would an island-state that was formerly its colony, freshly independent under acrimonious conditions, and only recently in the thick of regional conflict such as Konfrontasi and the Malayan Emergency need main battle tanks for its defence.
A large part of Singapore's air defence network on the ground is also Israeli (SPYDER). In the air the RSAF equips Israeli-made Python 4/5 air to air missiles on its F-16s; these are deemed more capable than US Sidewinder missiles. Singapore's airborne early warning is now based off the Gulfstream G550 business jet using an Israeli radar system produced by IAI/Elta. The first military drone publicly known to be used and operated by Singapore is also an Israeli model called the Heron.
Even for naval defence, Israel was pivotal in providing Singapore with weapons that allowed it to outclass anything regional militaries had for decades. The RSN was the first navy in Southeast Asia to have naval missile capabilities back in 1968 when it equipped its new Sea Wolf-class missile gunboats with Israeli Gabriel missiles. The latest version of this missile (Blue Spear) was selected last year to replace the US Harpoon antiship missile in RSN service onboard its six Formidable-class frigates, which are some of the most powerful surface ship assets in any Southeast Asian/Pacific navies barring the US and China.
Bottomline is, without Israeli military advice and cooperation, Singapore's very existence as an independent country in 2024 might not have been a reality.
Singapore is "malleable" in more ways than one, not all of them excusable in humanistic terms. so let's stop blaming Israelis for Lee's imperfect calculations in inviting the country's long, secret love affair with Israel. The problems with EL Al "landing rights" and even with Singapore's new "Israel has gone too far" rhetoric are justified and understandable as examples of the calculated gyrations of LKY's still-fundamentally illiberal, increasingly Orwellian society. Its apologists shouldn't blame that mania for control on Israel's interests, intentions, or software.
Physician, heal thyself!