The Ministry of Defence (MINDEF; ; zh, 新加坡國防部; ) is a ministry under the

Government of Singapore The government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore, Constitution of the Republic of Singapore to consist of the President of Singapore, President and the Executive. Executive authority of Singapore is vested in the Presi ...

responsible for overseeing the national defence of

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

History

MINDEF, together with the Ministry of Home Affairs, was created on 11 August 1970 by splitting up the then

Ministry of Interior and Defence The Ministry of Interior and Defence (MID) was a ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of Singapore. It was established in 1965, with Goh Keng Swee as the inaugural minister. The ministry was responsible for both internal an ...

Responsibilities

MINDEF's mission is to "enhance Singapore's peace and security through deterrence and diplomacy, and should these fail, to secure a swift and decisive victory over the aggressor." It has a policy of ''

Total Defence Total defence is a defence policy combining and extending the concept of military defence and civil defence. It entails a high level of readiness of both the state and its society to defend itself in cases of dangers and catastrophes such as war, ...

'' which consists of Military Defence, Civil Defence, Economic Defence, Social Defence, Psychological Defence and Digital Defence involving the people, public and private sectors of the country.

Organisational structure

MINDEF has one statutory board, the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA). The

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A component of the Ministry of Defence (Singapore), Ministry of D ...

(SAF), which consists of the

Singapore Army The Singapore Army is the Ground warfare, land Military branch, service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). The largest of the Singapore Armed Forces#Organisation, four branches of the SAF, the Singapore Army traces its origins to the Inf ...

, the

Republic of Singapore Navy The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) is the Naval warfare, maritime Military branch, service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for defending the country against any seaborne threats and as a guarantor of its sea lines of ...

(RSN), the

Republic of Singapore Air Force The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the aerial service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for controlling and defending the airspace of the country, and providing air support to the Army and Navy. It was establis ...

(RSAF), and the Digital and Intelligence Service (DIS), is a military component of MINDEF. The Security and Intelligence Division (SID), the foreign

intelligence service An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives. Means of info ...

of Singapore, is autonomous within the ministry.

Ministers

The Ministry is headed by the Minister for Defence, who is appointed as part of the

Cabinet of Singapore The Cabinet of Singapore forms the executive branch of the Government of Singapore together with the President. It is led by the Prime Minister who is the head of government. The Prime Minister is a Member of Parliament (MP) appointed by t ...

References

External links

Official websiteSingapore Government Directory Interactive — Ministry of Defence
*https://www.mindef.gov.sg/oms/dam/publications/ebooks/more_ebooks/ds21.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Ministry Of Defence (Singapore) Military of Singapore Defence, Ministry of