"Do Not Isolate China," Singapore Prime Minister Warns the US

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (left) and U.S. President Joe Biden (right) met on the 29th of last month (local time) for a summit.
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned the United States not to define the Ukraine war as a battle between democracy and dictatorship and to avoid isolating China.

On the 10th (local time), Bloomberg reported that Prime Minister Lee stated in a released statement, "It is necessary to be careful not to define China as being on the wrong side regarding the issue of Ukraine."

He explained, "Many countries have already joined in raising issues about sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity," adding, "Even China does not oppose this, and I personally strongly support it."

The report noted that the war with Ukraine initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin has already expanded into many security and economic issues, including Taiwan, the South China Sea, communication technology, and trade, testing US-China relations.

In his statement, Prime Minister Lee diagnosed, "The situation is already difficult enough," and said, "There is almost no trust between the two sides." He added, "It is not easy to gradually build trust and cooperate to ease tensions and reconcile."

Earlier, on the 29th of last month, US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Lee held a summit. The meeting was arranged to confirm the strategic partnership between the two countries and reportedly discussed Russia's war. At the press conference following the summit, they shared concerns about North Korea's ballistic missile announcement and condemned it.