Y5 Dialogue and Engagement with Ambassador A Selverajah, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Is a rules-based international order in peril? This was the broad question posed to Ambassador A. Selverajah and underpinned his dialogue and engagement with our Y5 Josephians this year.

Ambassador Selverajah opened the dialogue and engagement by sharing about Singapore’s foreign policy principles, and how these are robust and can apply to the various regional and global developments that have an impact on Singapore. Additionally, he impressed upon our Josephians that Singapore must always uphold the rule of law including international laws which are agreed upon by all countries and sovereign states. This is to ensure that Singapore, despite its small geographic size, remains credible, reliable, and relevant internationally. Ambassador also engaged our Josephians with his personal accounts and experiences throughout his career in the foreign service that spans more than 40 years.

Ang Jet Hong (FN502), member of the Society of International and Current Affairs (SICA) at SJI and one of the moderators for the dialogue and engagement shared that, ‘this opportunity to hear from Ambassador Selverajah and gain insights into ways countries engage with each other was fascinating! I especially enjoyed what Ambassador shared about "might is not always right" which is relevant to how Singapore has engaged with the international community and often punched above its weight’.

Kate Nattaya Sia (MN520), Vice-President of the Student Council, expressed her interest to contribute in the foreign service in the future and alongside some of her peers, was invited to a small group discussion with Ambassador Selverajah after the cohort-wide engagement. During this discussion, Ambassador shared more about his experiences as a diplomat and what aspiring officers could expect in a career with the foreign service. Kate felt that, ‘while Ambassador Selverajah explained that a career in the foreign service can be very demanding and may not be for everyone, it is certainly a very enriching and rewarding one. I think the challenges and demands of the work are meaningful when one considers and puts into perspective, that you are contributing to something bigger which is Singapore’s interests and survival in the world’.

We are grateful that Ambassador A. Selverajah took the time to engage our Josephians and increased their awareness of how global developments and issues have an impact on Singapore. Ambassador also left our Josephians with an appreciation of the meaningful work and purpose of the foreign service in ensuring Singapore not only survives but continues to thrive in the world!