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Singapore will be in difficult spot if US-China ties worsen: PM Lee

SINGAPORE — Any strain in ties between China and the United States will not be good for Singapore, as it will be forced to choose between one of the powers, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, adding that Beijing and Washington will need to work closely together to develop trust and keep bilateral ties on an even keel.

Combination file photos show US President-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photos: AP

Combination file photos show US President-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photos: AP

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SINGAPORE — Any strain in ties between China and the United States will not be good for Singapore, as it will be forced to choose between one of the powers, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, adding that Beijing and Washington will need to work closely together to develop trust and keep bilateral ties on an even keel. 

“If America-China relations become very difficult, our position becomes tougher. Because then, we will be coerced to choose between being friends with America, and friends with China,” said Mr Lee.

He was responding to a question in a BBC interview on whether US President Donald Trump’s new America First policy would lead to rising tensions in the region and make things more difficult for Singapore.

“That is the real worry. Right now we are friends with both (the US and China). Not that we do not have issues with either, but we are generally friends with both, and the relationships are in good working order,” 
Mr Lee added.

Asked if Sino-US ties are in danger of deteriorating, he replied that the relation requires close and sustained attention from both sides. 

“I am sure that the Chinese side does that. On the American side, I hope that they will have that attention, because on the American side, they have got many other issues to worry about — Europe, the Middle East, Ukraine, Latin America,” he said. 

“Unless you focus on this relationship — both the win-win aspects, as well as the areas where you are in contention — it can go wrong,” Mr Lee added. 

“It is not just a matter of making strong statements. You have to think about it thoughtfully, you must communicate convincingly and, to a certain degree, openly with the other side, and develop that strategic understanding, ideally trust, but at least strategic understanding, so that there is no miscalculation.”

Regional geopolitics have become more uncertain since the election of Mr Trump, particularly over his administration’s policy towards China and the Asia-Pacific.

Mr Trump attacked China on the campaign trail for stealing American jobs and running a massive, unfairly-won trade surplus with the US. 

He incensed Beijing in December by talking to the President of Taiwan and saying the US did not have to stick to the “One China” policy, under which Washington acknowledges the Chinese position that there is only one China, of which Taiwan is a part.

Mr Trump later agreed in a phone call with President Xi Jinping to honour the “One China” policy, in what was seen as a diplomatic boost for Beijing.

Several members of Mr Trump’s Cabinet have also warned Beijing against throwing its weight about in the South China Sea, insisting that the US would preserve international rights of navigation.

In a speech to People’s Action Party activists and union leaders in December, Mr Lee had also warned that countries today are “flexing their muscles and becoming increasingly assertive”, and no one can tell how relations between the major powers will develop. 

“If United States-China relations grow tense, Singapore is going to be in a very difficult spot, because we regard both the US and China as our friends and we do not want to have to choose between them,” he had said then. 

“At the same time, world trade is flat, obstacles to trade are increasing, our exports are not growing very much,” added Mr Lee, noting that it is getting harder for countries to “prosper together, to achieve win-win outcomes”.

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