In response to media queries on Ambassador-At-Large Professor Tommy Koh receiving the 2014 Great Negotiator Award at Harvard Law School on 10 April 2014, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Law K Shanmugam noted that Ambassador Koh has served with great distinction in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including having served as Singapore’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, Ambassador to the United States of America, Ambassador to Mexico and High Commissioner to Canada. In extending his congratulations to Ambassador Koh, Minister Shanmugam said:
“I am delighted that Tommy’s achievements as a diplomat and negotiator, which were always celebrated in Singapore, have been recognised by the Harvard Law School and the Kennedy School of Government. Tommy is of course well-known internationally for having guided the historic 3rd UN Conference on the Law of the Sea and the Rio Earth Summit to successful conclusion. Tommy was also Singapore’s Chief Negotiator for the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement, whose 10th anniversary we are celebrating this year. He also chaired the negotiations that produced the ASEAN Charter. In all of these occasions, Tommy has displayed the tremendous skills and typical grace of the consummate negotiator. The award cannot be more well-deserved.”