PRIME MINISTER TURNBULL:
Prime Minister, welcome to you and your colleagues here to Canberra.
This is the first visit by a Singaporean Prime Minister and only the twelfth address by a foreign leader to our Parliament.
It is a very significant day. It underlines the importance of our relationship. It underlines the fact that we are of the same mind on so many issues – economic, strategic.
In your National Day Address recently you spoke so eloquently of the importance of free trade and open markets, of innovation - you spoke so powerfully for the need to maintain stability and security and peace in our region and the importance of the rules-based order.
You are here, Prime Minister, among very good friends. We have so much in common and we are advancing our relationship further and further today.
PRIME MINISTER LEE:
Well thank you, Prime Minister, thank you for the very warm welcome and very warm words.
It is a great pleasure and honour to be here not just to visit you but also to be able to address Parliament. And also to put the substance into our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which we concluded last year and which we have now worked out agreements on defence and trade agreements, research and innovation and other areas.
It reflects the deep ties between our two peoples – it goes back into history, decades to the war.
It also reflects our similar perspectives on the world and the things which we hope to do together.
I read your piece in the Australian Financial Review this morning and I thought that we could be each other [laughter] so therefore we are on the same wavelength.
I hope that we will be able to reciprocate the hospitality and you will come and visit us next year and we will take it another step forward.
PRIME MINISTER TURNBULL:
Well, we look forward to our discussion and we look forward to your address to our Parliament. As I said, it is the first address by a Singaporean Prime Minister to our Parliament. It’s a very momentous day and the signing of all of our new arrangements which will advance our relationship. Prime Minister, welcome.
ENDS