How is it already August?! Didn't 2025 begin just a week ago?
Tell us it's [XXX] without saying it's [XXX]
A couple of weeks ago, K Shanmugam, the home affairs minister and coordinating minister of national security, revealed that Singapore is dealing with cyberattacks from a "highly sophisticated threat actor" targeting critical infrastructure. Unusually, he went a step further and identified this actor as UNC3886—but stopped short of naming the state behind this entity. "The intent of this threat actor in attacking Singapore is quite clear," he said. "It is going after high value strategic threat targets, vital infrastructure that deliver essential services. If it succeeds, it can conduct espionage and it can cause major disruption to Singapore and Singaporeans."
(Singaporeans, possibly unsure of what to do with this information, reacted in the most predictably Singaporean way ever: bought 4D with "3886".)
Shanmugam not naming the country doesn't mean we have no clue who it is. The mainstream media lost no time explaining that UNC3886 is a "China-linked cyber espionage group". The minister might not have said it out loud—and, when asked about the Chinese link, would only say it was "speculative"—but anyone reading the news would get the message: it's China. The Chinese embassy has bristled at this, publishing statements on their Facebook page saying that their government "expresses its strong dissatisfaction with this and opposes any groundless smears and accusations against China" and emphasising that China itself is a victim of cyberattacks.
This week, Shanmugam said that while the attack was a big enough deal that the government felt the public should know about it, they don't think it's in Singapore's interest "at this point in time" to name a specific country. He noted that experts and the media have all pointed the finger, but said that the "government does not comment on this".
This is the wink-wink-nod-nod of diplomacy, that art of sending a message without anyone/everyone losing too much face. I'm not super familiar with this area, but found this commentary from the Royal United Services Institute quite interesting:
UNC3886 is a threat actor cluster labelled by the cyber threat intelligence company Mandiant (now part of Google) — not an official designation used by Singaporean authorities to directly name a China-linked APT. Minister Shanmugam did not say ‘China.’ But the implication, to those familiar with threat intelligence lexicon, was crystal clear. This is an attribution that signals seriousness while preserving ambiguity. It leaves enough room to deter escalation or diplomatic fallout, without denying that Singapore was willing to publicly acknowledge a threat.
Beijing’s response mirrored this approach. A statement issued by the Chinese Embassy in Singapore did not address the Singaporean government directly. Instead, it was directed to Singaporean newspapers, stating that ‘China is a major victim of cyberattacks’ and ‘expresses its strong dissatisfaction with [the allegations] and opposes any groundless smears and accusations.’ The lack of direct engagement, and the framing of the response, reveal the unspoken rules of this rhetorical dance: one where the message has been received, but escalation has presumably been avoided (as far as public information goes).
They're not chocolate coins, right?
When a car tipped into a sinkhole that opened up on Tanjong Katong Road South, the migrant workers on the site nearby swung into swift action. When they saw a woman emerge from the car, they threw her a nylon rope and pulled her up.
For this remarkable act of service, these seven workers have each been presented with a Friends of ACE (FACE) appreciation coin from the Ministry of Manpower. The coin is named for MOM's Assurance, Care and Engagement (ACE) Group, which is supposed to be a division looking out for migrant workers' well-being. (So why are the migrant workers "friends of ACE" and not the other way 'round?)
Minister of State for the Ministry of Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash said that the presentation of this coin "goes a long way" in recognising the contributions that migrant workers make to Singapore and our society. Really? How long? Will it allow them, and other workers like them who've contributed to Singapore, travel in a safer and more dignified fashion than on the backs of lorries? Will it guarantee them better accommodation than stuffy, bare-bones dormitories? Will it give them better labour protections? Will this coin protect them from the possibility of being arbitrarily repatriated by their employer? Will they and their families be allowed a path to permanent residency in Singapore if they want to remain here after years of service?
A token of appreciation is nice and all, but what's the point of this performative—and ultimately self-congratulatory—act of coin-giving if we're not willing to do the right thing and take action where it matters? Saying "we were able to recognise each and every one with them with an MOM ACE coin recognise their good work" is just patronising and hypocritical when the very same government refuses to do bare minimum things like banning lorry transport. 😡😡😡
Here come the tariffs
US President Donald Trump's tariffs have been a hot topic across the world for months now. The general sentiment seems to be that it's going to be an own-goal for the US but will also cause some havoc globally. The Trump administration announced a new trade policy yesterday, and so far it looks like Singapore's rate is still at the baseline of 10%. I'm not sure what Taskforce Man Gan Kim Yong's role in all this was, but I guess we should be grateful the Cheeto Fascist-in-Chief didn't turn his full wrath on to us?
Thank you for reading! As always, feel free to forward this weekly wrap to anyone you like, and spread the word about this newsletter!