Opening the Singapore International Cyber Week on Tuesday, K Shanmugam said nations must rebuild trust and strengthen the rules-based order in cyberspace amid a surge in attacks that threatened both critical infrastructure and international stability.

“Without [trust], countries will be hesitant to share intelligence, and that will leave all of us exposed and weaken our collective defence order,” said Shanmugam, to a hall of policymakers and government officials.

“If some countries choose to weaponise technologies, others will naturally raise their fences. There will be a cyber arms race, a vicious cycle that benefits no one. We are, in fact, already in that situation.”

The annual summit, which runs until Friday, involves about 13,000 participants from more than 90 countries, including government officials, executives, diplomats and policymakers.