ABSTRACT

Since independence, Singapore has adhered to a foreign policy that is deeply influenced by balance of power assumptions. Singapore acknowledges that the United States (US) military presence in the western Pacific is 'vital to the stability and peace of the region'. The bilateral security relationship with America also provides an opportunity for Singapore to network into a web of joint military exercises that the US engages in with other regional states. Within the Asia-Pacific region, the Japan-America security alliance and the Korea-America security alliance are viewed as continuing manifestations of American forward deployments and involvement in the region. Their role in ensuring security of the wider Asia-Pacific, which constitutes the outer security environment of Singapore, is recognized at a time when only a residual American military presence remains in Southeast Asia. American security underpinning of the region during the Cold War bought time for non-communist Southeast Asia to concentrate on economic development.