Taiwan the 'most dangerous flashpoint' in US-China rivalry, Singapore's PM Lee Hsien Loong says
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has described tensions over the Taiwan Strait as the "most dangerous flashpoint" in the growing US-China rivalry, adding that risks of a "miscalculation or mishap" were growing.
In a speech heavily focused on foreign policy and the troubled state of geopolitics, Lee highlighted divergent views in Beijing and Washington about ties between the superpowers as among the ascendant risks for Singapore and the region.
While in Beijing there was a belief that the US was seeking to hold back China's growth, in the US there was now bipartisan consensus that "China's growing strength and assertiveness is becoming a grave threat to US interests and values", Lee told lawmakers.
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Describing Taiwan as the most dangerous flashpoint between the superpowers, Lee reiterated Singapore's one-China policy and its continuous support for "the peaceful development of cross-strait relations".
He said Singapore was "good friends with China and we are also old friends of Taiwan".
Beijing regards the island as a breakaway province to be brought under mainland control - by force, if necessary. Many countries, including the US, do not officially recognise Taiwan as an independent state but oppose the use of force to change the status quo.
"China considers Taiwan as the most important issue and the one-China principle to be the reddest of its red lines," Lee said.
But in the West, Lee noted that an "alternative narrative" was gaining currency: one that suggested that the problem of cross-strait relations was a "broader ideological issue of democracy versus autocracy".
"This is even though most countries, including most Western countries, have officially adopted one-China policies. This difference of views is very worrying," Lee said.
He referred to recent developments including Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen's meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and Beijing's subsequent military drills around Taiwan as examples of both sides making moves to respond to one another.
"It's a very worrying outlook. But we still hope that relations between US and China do not get worse, and that both sides can keep lines of communication open, and with time to actually repair the relationship on the basis of mutual trust and respect," Lee said.
The prime minister, 71, also highlighted the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war as among major external storms impacting the country. Lee described the conflict as "deadlocked, with no good outcome in sight".
"Neither side can win, nor can either afford to lose," Lee said, noting that relations between Russia and the Nato countries including the US had "completely broken down and will not return to normal any time soon".
On the economic front, amid a series of challenges including rising protectionism, the Singapore leader said the republic needed to stay, connected and exposed to competition from the world.
He said the rise of generative artificial intelligence would likely affect jobs across all sectors, with some either be eliminated or enhanced by the technology.
This is why Singapore needed to "complement our talent with skilled professionals from all over the world, who have the expertise and experience to help us make this transformation", he said, stressing the importance of integrating foreigners into the workplace and communities.
"It will be challenging," he said. "We will feel tensions. We will experience disruptions. We will have to manage the problems and deal with the trade-offs thoughtfully and sensibly."
Like other global hubs, Singapore has stepped up its hunt for global talent in the post-pandemic era, but that reignited old tensions over immigration and locals being crowded in the labour market.
Lee's 45-minute speech also touched on ties with Singapore's closest neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as the ongoing leadership transition between him and his designated successor, Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
Both men have said the succession will take place before or after the next general election, which must be called by 2025 but is increasingly seen by observers as likely to take place next year.
The ruling People's Action Party (PAP), in power without interruption since 1959, has in recent times sought to suggest that its decades-old dominance of the political landscape was not to be taken for granted.
The Workers' Party (WP), with nine MPs compared to the PAP's 83, is seen as the ruling party's biggest rival. Lee did not mention the WP in his speech.
He urged citizens to rally behind Wong and others in the so-called "4G" or fourth-generation leadership team of the PAP.
"Help me make this leadership renewal a success for Singapore and for you. Show your support for a government that works hard and works well for you. Elect leaders whom you can trust to take us forward," Lee said.
His speech is part of an ongoing parliamentary debate on a Motion of Thanks following President Halimah Yacob's address to the legislature last week.
Like the Monarch's Speech in Britain, the Singapore president's speech is delivered on behalf of the incumbent administration and outlines its legislative agenda.
Halimah's speech followed a midterm parliamentary break and detailed the PAP administration's priorities for the remainder of a term that began in 2020 and expires in 2025.
The prime minister's speech in a Motion of Thanks has traditionally been one of the highlights of Singapore's political calendar, alongside the annual National Day rally speech.
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
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