Though Singapore is the last ASEAN country to have an official diplomatic relationship with China, but Sino-Singaporean ties began much earlier than the founding of the modern China in October 1949.
132 years ago, the Qing empire had intiated a consulate office here, and in 1881, the then Beijing government even assigned a professional diplomat Zuo Bing Long (1850-1924) to Singapore.
The consulate office were later upgraded to embassy, and consulate was promoted to consul general, in charge of all affairs in the straits colonial settlement.
According to local renown history researcher Mr. Kua Bak Lim, since 1877 when all foreign diplomats and officials had to keep a diary and send the reports regulary back to Beijing. These reports recorded cultural information and important events which tohappened in the place where they were based at.
Therefore, the bilateral relationship between Singapore and China exist more than 20 years.
新加坡清史研究学会 