Not So Little Red Dot: 60 Years of Singapore’s Diplomacy

Singapore operates in a dangerous world — a world where might is right, where the strong eat the weak, and where small countries are, all too often, expected to submit to a brutish order.

This is the harsh reality that Singapore diplomats have faced over the past 60 years of the nation’s independence. Yet, they have clung resolutely to the belief that Singapore has the right to determine its own future. Amid violence and volatility, generations of foreign service officers have steadfastly advanced Singapore’s interests on the global stage — while remaining clear-sighted about the nature of the world we live in.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has played a critical role in charting Singapore’s path to prosperity through crisis and conflict. Ironically, its work remains largely invisible to the public. Not So Little Red Dot: 60 Years of Singapore’s Diplomacy is an attempt to peel back the curtain on six decades of foreign policy, and the men and women who have made it possible. The book spotlights seven episodes largely from the 21st century that illustrate key tenets of Singapore’s approach:

● Russia-Ukraine War — Sovereignty

● Gaza Crisis — Humanitarian Aid

● Vaccines — Multilateralism

● Trump-Kim Summit — Honest Broker

● Points of Agreement with Malaysia — Neighbourliness

● ASEAN formation — Centrality of ASEAN

● COVID-19 evacuations — Consular Assistance

Each chapter offers an accessible reading experience by blending comics from veteran artist Cheah Sinann and prose written by a team of seven writers from The Nutgraf. The content and communications agency was behind bestselling titles such as The First Fools: B-Sides of Lee Kuan Yew’s A-Team. Not So Not So Little Red Dot: 60 Years of Singapore’s Diplomacy is authorised by MFA to celebrate its 60th anniversary.