This chapter outlines the history of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) with due attention to the external and internal forces that shaped the institution and produced Singapore’s signal fusion. Moreover, it considers whether Tan’s civil-military fusion interpretation is still accurate-or applicable-for describing the armed forces of Singapore and their relationship with civilian authorities and broader civil society, and how the militarized civilian is a key component of the persistence of this fusion. During this crucial formative period, other key policies were implemented, including the soldier-scholar programs. During the SAF’s early years, strategic planning for efficiency and effectiveness reflected the limited resources available to the country. It is important to note that the SAF, with its early retirement policies and focus on cultivating skills that have value in the private sector, seems purpose-built to facilitate the movement of uniformed personnel into civilian life.

This chapter attempts to describe and contextualise Singapore's conception of security as articulated by its political leadership from 1965 to the present based on a number of key speeches, parliamentary debates and writings over the last 50 years which, in the view of this author, are worth revisiting and remembering. It shows that Singapore's security as conceived by its political leaders has been consistent throughout the last 50 years. From very early on, their understanding of the concept of security has been comprehensive and not narrowly conceived as just physical or territorial security and the use of force, although in Singapore's formative years, that was the immediate concern.