Captain Basza Alexzandar Haji Basri, Chairman, ASEAN Ports Association, or APA, Mr. Haji Khairul Zaman Haji Abd Jalil, Secretary General, APA, Mr. Niel Galias Tuazon, Head of APA Permanent Secretariat, Heads of Delegations, Distinguished Guests, 1 Good morning. 2 On behalf of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, or MPA, I welcome you to Singapore for the 45th ASEAN Ports Association Working Committee Meeting. 3 It has been eight years since Singapore last hosted an APA meeting. We are glad to have ASEAN's port community back with us once again. 4 For centuries, Singapore has been a meeting point for traders, cultures and ideas, connecting our region to the rest of the world. And today, we continue to be a thriving port. 5 Our maritime journey has always been underpinned by one enduring principle. Our success depends not only on our geography, but on our openness, connectivity and, above all, our partnerships. 6 That same spirit continues to guide us today. No port succeeds in isolation. Every vessel that calls at our ports, every shipment that crosses our seas – they move because governments, ports and industry partners choose to work together. Significance of ASEAN 7 Today, that spirit of partnership is more important than ever. 8 We meet at a time of geopolitical strain. Conflicts in different parts of the world, and repeated supply chain disruptions, have shown us how interconnected our economies are. 9 We have seen how disruptions to vital shipping routes can have consequences far beyond the waters in which they occur in. These developments remind us that safety and security in maritime transport do not stop at our own waters. They are regional, and indeed global, concerns. 10 ASEAN feels this keenly. Ours is among the world's most trade-dependent regions, connected by the seas that have long served as our economic lifeline. 11 Our seas carry the food, the fuel and the goods our people depend on, and the millions of jobs that come with them. 12 The resi