Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was recently interviewed by a BBC reporter, talking about the new crown epidemic, citizen information, globalization and international relations, the following are Q&A issued by the Prime Minister's Office of Singapore and some translations of China-US relations.
BBC: Relations between the US and China have deteriorated significantly over the past few years. Which side will you choose in the future?
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong: I hope there will not be a day when we will have to choose a side. We can't choose either side because we have very close and extensive cooperation with the United States and China in the economic and other fields, as well as with many other countries. I don't think Singapore alone is in a dilemma, which is a common problem faced by many countries. That is why we hope and encourage the two great powers to think carefully before deciding that the other is a competitor that must be eliminated or suppressed.
BBC: But is it practical to remain neutral? Since Biden took office, he has asked for a review of the supply chain, claiming to work with like-minded countries. It sounds like the U.S. has made a decision. Don't you want to make a decision before you have any other choice?
Lee Hsien Loong: Such tensions are inevitable. European countries are also feeling the pressure. But just before Biden was elected president, the EU reached an investment deal with China. So I don't think we're the only country facing a dilemma.
BBC: What tactics would you like President Biden to adopt in his dealings with China and Asia?
Lee Hsien Loong: I don't need to give him any advice, but first of all, we are counting on a U.S. president who can get good support at home; second, we need to have a fair understanding of the global situation and the role of the United States, believe in multilateralism and international trade, and be prepared to play the role of the United States itself and maintain a system that benefits the United States a lot.
BBC: Under what circumstances do you think there will be a real military conflict between China and the United States?
Lee Hsien Loong: If there are any accidents, they could happen sooner than you think. But if both China and the United States act cautiously, military conflict can be avoided. There were many near-to-conflict during the Cold War, but this has lasted for almost 40 years, and we have been fortunate to avoid a nuclear catastrophe.
BBC: Based on what you know about these two countries, how likely do you think this is now?
Lee Hsien Loong: This is more likely to happen now than it was five years ago, but I don't think the likelihood of a military conflict between China and the United States is high at the moment. However, the situation has become very tense, thus increasing the risk of military conflict between the two countries, which I think is quite possible, because both Governments have domestic interests as their primary consideration. What is the situation in their countries? How are they going to sustain this? China and the United States have their foreign relations centered on the interests of their respective peoples, so how should they respond to the needs of the people? Therefore, it is not easy for external logic to promote cooperation between the two sides, because internal logic may force them to take a tough stance, bring the two countries to an impasse and trigger conflict. These are all things that can easily happen.
BBC: How do you see the coexistence of these two superpowers in the region?
Lee Hsien Loong: They have to coexist. They will face competition, tension and the South China Sea in the region. But they are two very powerful states, and neither side can eliminate the other or fall down on its own. China, unlike the Soviet Union, was simply unable to sustain its economy at all, and many of them were illusory. Eventually, Ronald Reagan proposed the Strategic Defense Initiative and pushed hard for the military strategy. It was enough to drag down the Soviet Union, but Gorbachev led the country in a different direction.
But the Chinese economy does not have this problem. It has great resilience, dynamism and potential. Chinese people are proactive and make continuous progress. If necessary, they can survive on their own. But no matter what, they will keep moving forward, and they will not give up on it. On the other hand, the United States will not fall. While the United States currently faces serious political divisions and problems, it is dynamic and attractive to people around the globe. It has recovered from its difficulties. So I think that unless these two forces decide to coexist, they will go through a difficult period, and we will not be spared.
BBC: Do you think the United States needs to accept that it is no longer the world's number one power?
Lee Hsien Loong: The United States is still the first in the world, but the second largest country is following behind, and this is a fact that is difficult for the United States to accept.
BBC: How do you see the direction of Chinese politics?
Lee Hsien Loong: We cannot judge the domestic pressures that have prompted China to make decisions. But I think that China's position in the international arena has won it some friends, but it has inevitably formed tensions with the main forces and many other countries. If you pay attention to some of the survey reports, such as the Pew Research Center, which regularly tracks the world's views on China, it is not difficult to find that there is great anxiety and uneasiness about the direction of China's development and whether it is beneficial to them. I don't think it's in China's interest.
BBC: So what do you think is a better solution or a better way?
Lee Hsien Loong: I am reluctant to give advice to the leaders of other countries. I believe they all have their own calculations. Nevertheless, what we hope to see is that China can become a country acceptable to all countries in the world, and that countries around the world can regard China's prosperity, development and strength as an opportunity for coexistence and common prosperity. This has actually been maintained for a long time, because since the reform and opening up in 1978, China's opening up and economic growth in the past 40 years have brought many opportunities not only for Asian countries, but also for people around the world such as Europe, the United States, and Latin America. Even now, many countries, including Singapore, are eager to maintain good relations with China and benefit from China's development for mutual benefit and common prosperity. I think this is an extremely important advantage for China, and it would be a pity if China loses this advantage in the next stage of development.
Let's look at the United States again. In the past, U.S. businessmen and multinationals have strongly advocated good relations with China because they see opportunities and how to succeed in China. So they invested and traded there. Walmart has bought a lot of goods from China, benefiting Americans. This is good not only for Walmart, but also for American housewives and people across the country. But I think the attitude of the American business community has changed in the last five to seven years. They no longer openly support China as they once did. In fact, we see a lot of regressions. It's not that China has no chances, it's that they see that China has moved forward and hope that it will provide a more open environment for them to get more opportunities. I think this situation is understandable. China's position now is different from what it was in the past, and it must rebalance its relations with the rest of the world. What other countries promised in the early days now need to be readjusted, a reality that is difficult for a country to accept.
BBC: It's true that this makes it difficult for countries like Singapore to navigate. What are the main considerations when you try to deal with these economic and political powers?
Lee Hsien Loong: First of all, what is in Singapore's interest? Second, how do we make a rational assessment of this, make a judgment, and then unite the people and convince them that the government is right to do so? Overall, we want to be friends with both China and the United States, but we have to find our own path. From time to time, there are always disputes between countries. We occasionally have disputes with China and occasionally disagreements with the United States. When this happens, we have to understand that it is inevitable. This is bound to happen between countries. That doesn't mean we're adversaries, but it does mean that we have issues that need to be addressed, and that we can continue to work together in other areas. That's how we survive.
Article from Lianhe Zaobao, March 14, 2021
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