Inward-looking America ‘will have negative impact on world’: PM Lee

SINGAPORE — Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has warned the United States against turning inwards, saying such a move would have a negative impact on the country and the world. 

Citing as an example US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s proposal to build a wall along the US-Mexican border to prevent illegal immigration, a plan that has the support of about 40 per cent of Americans, Mr Lee said such sentiments are “not helpful”.

“I think it is negative for America and it is negative for the world,” he said in an interview with Mr Ian Bremmer, editor-at-large at Time magazine.

Instead, the Prime Minister urged the US to continue to further its engagements with South-east Asia, saying that Washington has cultivated a lot of interest and goodwill in the region.

“If you look at the Asean (Association of South-east Asian Nations) countries, practically all are very happy to see you present in the region. It means prosperity, it gives options and it fosters stability,” said Mr Lee. “So for you to say it is not an important interest and it does not matter to the US anymore for the next 10 years, I think that is not accurate.”

The US, under outgoing President Barack Obama, has sought to “pivot” to Asia by increasing its engagement in the region. Mr Obama has visited South-east Asia almost every year since 2009 and Asean-US relations hit a high point in February this year when he hosted leaders of the 10-nation grouping in a Special Summit at the historic Sunnylands estate in California. But there are doubts whether the next American President will remain committed to engaging Asean.

When asked during the interview on the geopolitical situation in the region if Mr Obama’s Asia pivot fails in the next five to 10 years, Mr Lee said some Asian countries may take a more active stand.

“It depends on what the Indians do, what the Japanese do. Mr Modi (Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi) is trying to set the country in the right direction and they will have interests beyond the South Asian subcontinent. The Japanese, if the Americans begin to look less reliable as a partner, you do not know what they will do. Their Cabinet Secretary has already said in February this year that nuclear weapons are not against their Constitution.”