Cybersecurity and digitalization are among five key areas where Japan and Singapore plan to take relations to fresh highs next year as the partners look to step up cooperation on emerging technologies such as quantum computing, according to the city-state’s envoy to Tokyo.

“When it comes to cybersecurity, there are so many different areas that you can look at,” Ambassador Ong Eng Chuan said in an interview with The Japan Times ahead of the two countries’ 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2026.

“While today is artificial intelligence, tomorrow we're looking at the possibility of quantum technology, taking it a step further,” he said, noting that post-quantum cryptography — the development of cryptographic systems designed to be secure against both quantum and classical computers — “is going to create a whole new set of challenges and opportunities.”