Opening Address by Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the Singapore International Cyber Week, 23 October 2025

1 Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us here this morning.
It's a pleasure for me to be here. I believe this is the fourth day of the SICW.

2 Cyberspace has become a borderless fabric that enables us to observe,
to communicate, to mobilise, and to transact at scale and at a speed which is
unprecedented. If you think about what happened on the streets around
Singapore two weeks ago, we had the F1 race. Many people think of driving
quickly as requiring a powerful engine. But I would add that there are other
elements that are essential. You also need good brakes if you're going to drive
quickly. You need a driver with quick reflexes. And another element which is
often underestimated in order to drive safely on the road or on the high seas or
to fly in the air- you need a highway code. You need rules of the road to avoid
collisions, to ensure safety and for us to conduct all the essential activities.

3 Cybersecurity, in a sense, represents the brakes. It also, through its
normative processes which this conference includes, is also a means for us to
generate the norms, the rules, the codes needed for these activities to be
conducted effectively and safely.

4 I just want to make three quick points this morning. First point is that
cybersecurity has become yet another domain of the global commons. The
global commons refer to areas which by definition are beyond borders; by
definition, issues and problems which are beyond the aegis of a single actor or
single state to control or to deal with. And examples in history include, for
instance, pandemics, climate change, social and political movements and
developments in response to industrial revolutions. For instance, the welfare
state; social security. And in a sense, because we are now in a technological age,
this is yet another arena where the global commons and cybersecurity is one key
burning issue. So that's the first point. It is an issue of the global commons.

5 The second point is that we need a multilateral approach. And since
the United Nations in essence reflects the apex multilateral body, it is essential
that we recognise that there is a role for the UN which is still the only
organisation that encompasses all state actors and increasingly also non-
governmental organisations. And also a voice and a forum for civic discourse
and for non-government organisations reflecting views from the broad spectrum
of society.

6 Singapore is very proud of the fact that our Permanent Representative
to the UN Mr Burhan Gafoor chaired the Open-Ended Working Group over the
last four to five years. It's amazing that even in these fractured times, the
OEWG was able to land agreement by consensus. If you think about it, to
achieve this at a time like what we are currently experiencing on global affairs
is a major achievement. The agreements included developing a Global Points of
Contact Directory, which serves essentially as an emergency hotline system in
the event of urgent ICT incidents. They were also able to adopt eight Global
Confidence-Building Measures to enhance mutual transparency, understanding
and ultimately build a level of confidence that enables interoperability. Most
importantly, we also agreed to establish the UN Global Mechanism on ICTs
Security, which will continue our collective norm-building efforts in this
domain.

7 My third point is that recognising that this is an issue of the global
commons, recognising the role of the UN is essential but not sufficient because
we know that when problems arise, the states and the stakeholders who will be
most at risk will be by definition those who are less equipped, with less
infrastructure, with less capacity to deal with emergencies and problems as and
when they arise. And that's why my third point is the essential need for capacity
building.

8 After all, cybersecurity is only as strong as its weakest link, and
especially for small and developing states, the stakes are particularly high as

these emerging platform technologies threaten to widen the digital divide,
increase vulnerabilities, and it is essential for small states to have access to
capacity building programmes and that they have a voice on global fora on
developing digital governance, building cyber resilience against malicious
actors and access to the tools to effectively navigate digital transformation. In a
sense, it's the old analogy of "a chain is only as strong as its weakest link", and
it is in our collective interest to enhance the capacity of everyone and in
particular, focus on the most vulnerable.

9 Earlier this week, we announced the renewal of our UN Singapore
Cyber Programme, which is organised in collaboration with the UN Office of
Disarmament Affairs. The UN Singapore Cyber Fellowship has benefited 140
participants from 97 countries since its inception in 2022, and I hope that this
will be the first of many capacity building programmes.

10 In February 2024, ASEAN member states agreed to establish the
ASEAN Regional Computer Emergency Response Team, which will be funded
and hosted by Singapore. It will enhance our collective ability to respond to
cyber threats by coordinating the cybersecurity incident responses across all
ASEAN member states. And these are practical measures to manage cyber
incidents, and we hope it will also foster broader regional stability and in turn,
turbocharge the economic and social contributions of these technologies in all
ASEAN societies.

11 Looking ahead, the accelerating advances in AI, quantum computing
and the Internet of Things will continue to dramatically reshape our landscape,
and our governance frameworks must adapt. They must take a prospective view,
and they must be capable of addressing today's threats and tomorrow's
uncertainties. The frameworks we build today can mitigate the risks, can
promote cyberspace as a catalyst for human advancement and dignity, but these
frameworks can only deliver lasting security when matched with political will
and operational capability.

12 Singapore remains steadfast in our belief that international
cooperation grounded in international law and guided by shared emerging
norms offers the most practical path forward. We commit to working closely
with all our international partners and stakeholders to advance these policy
discussions, governance frameworks and practical solutions that will preserve
international peace and security in cyberspace.

13 I look forward to the discussions and I hope we'll have some robust
set of questions to follow in the session. Thank you all very much.

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