Starting a New Book Retelling: 50 Years of Singapore and the United Nations
I just picked up a book that blew my mind a little.
It’s called “50 Years of Singapore and the United Nations”, edited by Tommy Koh, Li Lin Chang, and Joanna Koh (ISBN: 978-9814713030, World Scientific Publishing, 2015). And honestly, it tells one of the most underrated stories in modern international relations.
Here’s the basic setup. Singapore became independent in 1965. Not by choice, really. It got kicked out of the Malaysian Federation. A tiny island with about 2 million people, no natural resources, surrounded by much bigger neighbors.
One of the very first things this brand-new country did? Applied to join the United Nations. Because when you’re that small and that vulnerable, international recognition isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s survival.
Singapore got admitted as the UN’s 117th member state on September 21, 1965. And what happened over the next 50 years is pretty remarkable.
What This Book Is About
The book is a collection of 45 essays written by Singaporean diplomats, ambassadors, ministers, and officials who actually worked at the UN or with its various agencies. These are first-hand accounts from people who were in the room when things happened.
It covers everything from Security Council politics to world trade negotiations, from peacekeeping missions to something as unexpected as World Toilet Day (yes, really).
The book is organized into five main sections:
- United Nations in New York - the big stage of global diplomacy
- United Nations in Geneva, WTO, and GATT - trade and economic stuff
- UN Specialized Agencies - from the IMF to the World Health Organization
- UN Peacekeeping - Singapore’s military and police contributions abroad
- UN Secretariat - Singaporeans who actually worked inside the UN system
Why I’m Retelling This Book
Most people think of Singapore as a business hub or a place with strict laws. But its diplomatic story is fascinating. This tiny country punched way above its weight at the UN. It created the Forum of Small States. It helped bridge the gap between the G20 and smaller nations. It championed causes from ocean law to sanitation.
And the people who tell these stories in the book were actually there. They’re not theorizing. They’re sharing what it was like to represent a small country in a world dominated by big powers.
So I’m going to retell this book chapter by chapter. Each post will cover one essay, breaking down the key ideas in a way that’s easy to follow. You don’t need to know anything about Singapore or the UN to enjoy this.
If you’re interested in how the world actually works behind the scenes - how countries negotiate, form alliances, and fight for their interests - this series is for you.
What’s Coming Next
The next post covers the foreword by Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, a message from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and two historic speeches that set the tone for everything that followed.
Then we’ll go through all 45 chapters, one per day.
Let’s get into it.
Book Details:
- Title: 50 Years of Singapore and the United Nations
- Editors: Tommy Koh, Li Lin Chang, and Joanna Koh
- ISBN: 978-9814713030
- Publisher: World Scientific Publishing
- Year: 2015
- Series: World Scientific Series on Singapore’s 50 Years of Nation-Building
Next post: Foreword, Message, and the Speeches That Started It All