Conversation with Singapore's Minister for Foreign Affairs

I understand that this is your third visit to the United States in as many months your most recent visible is and I'm not sure that that's a little bad your most recent visit was just last month for an ASEAN foreign ministers meeting hosted by secretary Tillerson that's right and you've made this trip the third trip your specialty for you for us so thank you very very think the fact that you've done so is really reflective of AJC's warm relationship with Singapore it reflects also our appreciation and recognition of the importance of your friendships with the United States with Israel and your importance in a region of expanding importance in the world there are many many subjects that we need to cover tonight that we'd like to cover and limited time I'd like to first before we delve into the questions offer you an opportunity to set the stage for us and let us know what's on your mind right let me quickly first tell you how small Singapore is I don't know how many of you had been there we're about two-thirds the size of New York City or 112 the size of Cyprus we have only been independent for 51 years but the story of Jews in Singapore egos like 200 years and for some reason which I haven't been able to figure out yet the early families the Jewish families and sing 200 years ago all came from Baghdad I haven't figured why and they were illustrious hard-working high achieving but I guess that standard right for all Jews all over the world and in fact so much so that when the British started with self-government of Singapore in the 50s the first chief minister of Singapore was a bag daddy Zhu David Saul Marshall how I'm not sure how many other countries can explain claim that many right not many then after we got full independence in 1965 and we needed to establish an Armed Forces my founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew wrote a letter to several countries I won't name them out of embarrassment because only one country replied guess who Israel and and I shared a story because again it illustrates the point that a friend in need is a friend indeed and that has been one key reason but it's very close intimate relationships that we've had with Israel all these years because when we were small and inconsequential and didn't matter you didn't ignore us in at the other point is that over the years obviously the relationship has grown it's had to be somewhat low profile because we live in a how shall I put it and interesting and sometimes tough neighborhood not as tough as Israel but challenging enough and the first visit by and its really hit of sleek Prime Minister Netanyahu occurred just earlier this year and in fact my Prime Minister the first time Peter visit as the Prime Minister through Israel last in April last year and I thought I'd share with you some personal reflections it was a very moving visit profound visit for me we started up in Jordan we went up the mountain able to just get some idea of what the promised land couldn't look like I think it was very dry different than then we then went to the Jordan River the baptismal site bhaktas cross the Allenby bridge went in Jerusalem saw the Western Wall went up on the Temple Mount the Dome of the rock al-aqsa mosque then the other parts of the old city Church of the Holy Sepulchre I mean it it may surprise you but even for a nation I'm of mixed ancestry Indian and Chinese it was a profoundly moving experience but one point which kept reverberating in my mind as I was up on Temple Mount was how much blood my certain shed over millennia for that holy site and it humbled me because you know the trouble of minutes the diplomats is we think everything can be solved it's a form of words negotiations and it humbled me that it's not so simple life is going to be a challenge and the second table which has been buzzing in my mind is that if you think about the story of the Jewish people and the enormous suffering that you have sustained one key lesson I believe which is perhaps even more relevant today is that identity is unique and not universal meaning yes we all created in the image of God but we all have unique identities and one special magic for the Jewish people is that you've been able to keep your identity despite being actually a very small group despite enormous trials and tribulations you've kept that identity and the second point is that if you look at the suffering and your survival it's a reminder that we need to have Universal protection of minorities and if you fast forward to the world of today see for most of human history we've lived surrounded by people who are related to us look like us smelt like us ate like us pray to the same God but now in this day and age the internet and jet travel suddenly all of us are now acutely aware there were a minority it applies particularly in Singapore because although 75% of the population had ancestry from China another six seven percent of India and fifteen percent of the Malay Archipelago as far as religion is concerned everyone is a minority and I can't help reflecting that even the today's we we are not sure we can talk about terrorism fundamentalism and the rest of it but in fact one key story or one key lesson that the Jewish story has for the world is the importance of protecting minorities of respecting the need for a unique identity and at the same time having Universal respect and if we can get a we can learn that right lesson many of the challenges that we face can be solved that's certainly that's certainly a principle that AJC uphold not only in Asia that around the world yes no and even it was it for me again it was I couldn't help noticing that we started off with the star-spangled banner and here we are the AJC and you're all singing it we're an American organization exactly exactly no so the point is that we all have multiple identities and we people should not be forced to choose one or the other and that again is the problem with extremists I'd like to pick up on your first point when you were speaking about the important visit to the reciprocal visits of the Prime Minister's about a year ago a little bit over a year ago Prime Minister Lee to Israel and then more recently in February Prime Minister Netanyahu to Singapore it's a very significant visit it was the first time for an Israeli prime minister to be in Singapore could you talk a little bit about the significance of that visit and some of the some of the accomplishments from it and some of the sensitivities around it well first the sensitivities I mean as I said just now we've had a long relationship and it's been a relationship grounded on strategic trust clearly there's been training I mean I myself have had the privilege of being trained by him we used to call Israeli advisors in fact I'll tell you in 1965 we used to call the Israeli advisors Mexicans that was the cold way I'm not sure how the administration would do that today but again comes back to my point about respecting minorities so yes it has been sensitive so it's taken us several decades before we could have a sitting Prime Minister Singapore and a sitting Prime Minister of Israel exchange visits the significance is that I believe Asia has moved on and our neighbors are able to accept the fact that we have a special relationship and that it's based on trust and it's a constructive relationship many things that we admire about Israel I mean if you look say at a startup scene Israel has only a population of about 8 million but the startups just in 2015 alone were able to attract something like two point six billion dollars in venture capital to put things in context Germany which has 10 times the population ratio the startups label to attract venture capital off 2.9 billion u.s. dollars the point here is that Israel for some reason always manages the punch-up of its weight and it's no surprise therefore that we've got investments in Israeli startups it's really companies I think they're about 400 or more half are based in Singapore and they're really using the presence in Singapore as a portal as an interface with Southeast Asia and beyond so the point is that there has been over many decades in an exchange of ideas personnel of talent military academic startups entrepreneurs and and this is something which we want to encourage and to continue to build and the other point is because we live in a part of the world where there is actually a Muslim majority we also hope that this will also eventually help build confidence help build trust and Prime Minister Netanyahu indicated that Israel is also looking for avenues to engage and expand interactions on a larger stage to get beyond the zero-sum games the lack of trust what we look for is a gateway yes into into the rest of Asia so that's what we're offering you know your you can come to Singapore you'd feel at home the synagogues are there functionally you can do everything that you want there you can celebrate all the festivals including the Passover Yom Kippur and you are also integrated into a multicultural multiracial country and you have access to the region as you know AJC delegations have visited Singapore over the last decade and we hope to visit again very soon soon I'd like to turn a little bit to the the u.s. Singapore relationship your colleague ambassador causa kan has said that in Asia trade is strategy yes and not so long ago the United States pulled out of the trans-pacific partnership which was a great blow to Singapore which was at the with spearheading the negotiations that led to it and it was a blow to many other countries who who had who were signatories including Japan and Vietnam whose leaders for a lot of political capital on finding on to that agreement AJC supported the trans-pacific partnership we believe that it was favorable to the United States and as importantly or more importantly that it demonstrated American leadership and commitment in the region the United States has pulled out of the trans-pacific partnership unfortunate I think that we would appreciate hearing your perspective on what that means and what the the future holds well let me give you a very frank response it's a great disappointment but from a Singapore perspective first let me speak a Singapore we've actually had a free trade agreement with the United States since 2004 in this period of time United States exports to Singapore it's five services concern have double goods at least seventy five percent when my Prime Minister spoke to President Trump we took pains to remind President Trump the United States runs a big surplus against Singapore but we're not complaining the reason we're not complaining is because we believe that free trade and economic integration creating interdependence collaboration and win-win outcomes is the way to secure peace and prosperity and I and you must understand I say this as a country where three is three and a half times our GDP so for us this is not a debating point or a posture on stage trade is our lifeblood so yes we were key advocate believers in the TPP not because it gave us any I mean the mark the benefits to Singapore would have been marginal because we already have a bilateral and as I said it's been doing well but we believe in a multilateral regional TPP with key American participation because it's signal American engagement with the Asia Pacific which one I don't have and that's where all the office any of you have been many of you in this audience rustic businessman you know that the enormous opportunities in Asia and even in Southeast Asia when Vice President Trump went to Jakarta pic 2 months ago he made a speech and he said look more than a hundred billion dollars worth of US exports goods and services go to Southeast Asia Southeast Asia supports about half a million jobs back home American investment in Southeast Asia now runs at about two hundred and seventy billion u.s. dollars the amazing thing is that America has more invested in Southeast Asia then it has combined in India China and Japan I mean I was shocked there's actually more in Southeast Asia than you have invested in India's China and Japan so the point is the enormous opportunities out there and for America not to take full advantage of that to enter into a multilateral win-win regional trade agreement to me it's a great pity you're missing out on opportunity but actually beyond just the dollars and cents and business we believe this is of strategic importance in fact the strategy is more important than the economics and certainly more important than military dimension because again if you think about it there's no reason for seven three unless you've got something to defend and we are past the age of cause of colonization what we are now is in the age group the real benefits of globalization when we reach the age of interdependence when it is in our mutual interests to invest in each other to have good relations to build up trust to build up collaboration so we think it's a great pity because it's a missed opportunity to build an architecture inclusive fair and open architecture which we believe would have secured the peace and prosperity for both America and for Asia that's the biggest thing the u.s. is not a signatory now so people say that it creates an opening for China if people say that it is a retreat of the United States it is not demonstrating a commitment to the region how what are the steps what we have well the first thing I would I would put it is not to look at look at it as a zero-sum game or is a pure contest between the United States and China because separately the ASEAN countries are negotiating with China India Japan Korea Australia New Zealand for another large regional free trade agreement called the offset RCEP regional comprehensive economic partnership we love acronyms in Asia this Chinese initiative no it's an Austrian initiative and what it does is that we Austrian already has free trade agreements with these six partners and we're putting it together into one large mother free trade agreement it will include probably about forty five percent of the world's population one third of the world's GDP it will not be as ambitious as the TPP but in terms of scope is even wider than the TPP but singles participated actively in both of these because we try to avoid zero-sum deal what we are really after was to put these two pieces together a TPP and RCEP and construct a free trade area of the asia-pacific again it comes back to our fundamental belief on creating interdependence mutual investments as a recipe for peace and prosperity and that again so yes it's a pity the United States has pulled out but the remaining members of the TPP are exploring ways to continue to go ahead to ratify and if everyone can agree to proceed without them opening up the text we will happily sign on to the TPP 11 but we will still hope that at some point good sense of reveal in the United States of realized it's in your own enlightened long-term self-interest to come back I'm going to stay on the topic of US commitment just a little bit longer AJC travels regularly to Asia since I've been the director of Asia Pacific Institute we've had many delegations to many countries in in Asia and consistently the subject of the US commitment to the region has come up and to be fair this was formerly under the Obama administration and more recently during the presidential election and with president elect Trump during the election there were statements bombastic statements that were that were made there were statements distancing ourselves from our traditional allies with the new administration there has been some distancing some reassurances that have been given by President Trump as well as by visits by secretary mattis by secretary Tillerson Singapore's reading of this are you confident in the u.s. maintaining a robust presence and interest in your region well let me take a step back and if you look at the period from the end of the Second World War until today we've had 70 years where you saw the Berlin Wall fall you saw the clear benefits of free markets open economies global integration so much so that in 1989 or early 90s I think Francis Fukuyama declared the end of history which of course was hopeless but the point is that be 70 years has actually lynyrd a golden age not absolute peace but certainly for Asia we've had peace with it prosperity if you look at what's happened in China and in India hundreds of millions of people have been lifted from abject poverty and because we are interdependent on each other it really doesn't make sense for major conflict to occur having said that I think the problem for those of us who are advocates for free trade is that we have not paid enough attention to the asymmetrical impact it has on different segments of the society that means there are some people in a local level who I risk of being left behind or not equipped or trained or qualified to harvest the fruits of this brave new integrated world and here's where we need to get the balance between domestic policies so make sure no one is left behind and get that balance with open and free trade on an international level so I think what we're seeing right now is there is a mood in many societies of anxiety of fear of envy middle-class wages have stagnated many middle-class white-collar jobs are disappearing not because of trade but actually because of Technology and because politicians and our responses have not been sufficiently convincing and reassuring to the local population there has been a revolt there has been a retreat from globalization our anxiety is that we will end up with the worst of both laws you will reject free trade and economic integration with all the benefits that brings to peace and prosperity and at the same time it's easy to express anger much harder to restructure the economies retool your people provide new skills change your education system in fact again you take them they just really evolution for 250 years so but the education as we know it only really transformed in the lake in 1865 to the early 1900 so we change our education systems to meet the challenge of the Industrial Revolution we now have a digital revolution and I think we have not transformed our education systems radically and quickly enough if you take another example from the end of the Second World War the two key things the u.s. at the GI Bill which provided education to all the returning veterans and that led to a golden age because they were given new skills and they were able to harvest the fruits of the post Second World War and that's why you saw middle class Risa's improving the other key thing that happened after the Second World War was the Marshall Plan which again uplifted in fact it's ironic that the so-called losers of the war Japan and Germany and in this length and a lot of Europe in fact were key beneficiaries of this Marshall Plan the point here for both the GI Bill in the Marshall Plan is uplifting people by giving them skills qualifications which are relevant and meet the challenges of the time we believe that we are at such a moment an inflection point there's a new revolution that new requirements for education skills and training if we make the right choices and prepare people and make sure the safety nets are in place and we don't give up on free markets open economies and economic integration then perhaps you'll see a new golden age but it's very hot I mean I can we can discuss it here it's very hard to stand at a red political rally and win votes on this kind of arguments but in Singapore that's what we're focused on we are fought out strong domestic focuses on economic restructuring trying to decide where the new jobs are what kind of startups will have a chance want new technologies we investing heavily in infrastructure connectivity broadband whatever else I mean in simple because we are so small it's easy for me to guarantee you that you'll have the best infrastructure in the world then we're reworking our education system so that it deals not only with kids preparing or pre-employment but dealing with adults who need to get a second job or third job because it's likely that all of us will have multiple jobs in the future Minister I'm going to we we are running out of time and still I have a long list of things that I wish that I could cover with you but I would be remiss if I do not ask a question about China before we leave your predecessor foreign minister Shimon gong was on this stage and he spent a great deal of time talking about China and the attention it needs to be safe to be paid to China could you comment on that and then perhaps make some concluding remarks about China the china-us relationship and how it fits in with Singapore and ASEAN what do the Chinese people and the Jewish people have in common an identity which transcends thousands of years and in fact a thousand years ago if you ask which civilization had paper the printing press gunpowder Sexton ocean-going fleets it was China China missed out on the Industrial Revolution and because of that so it went through two centuries of humiliation it's not going to make that same mistake again so what the China won China wants to be number one again when China was strong and United in human history it usually generated about 30% of global GDP so there's no question about China's ambition and China's capacity that's what it's aiming for now the key challenge is that for the last 17 years we've been used to a unipolar world one-tenth for called the United States of America key question now is what do you do with China and not far behind from China most people don't realize that the population of India is going to exceed that of China within the next few years and then what's going to happen to Europe so my sense is that we're actually moving to a multipolar world and the question then is how do we secure the peace in a multipolar world and which is when I come back to this issue about trying to learn the right lesson from the story of the Jewish people an incredibly blessed and talented people but almost always in history a minority and if you try to impose uniform identities and try to straitjacket everyone you end up with Wars and conflict if we accept that we are all minorities but we all want a better world and we have mutual respect and we protect minorities and yet we still have a world where we can transact we can engage you can interact with peace and neutral respect we can have a golden age so I you know so I I'm not saying that just because I'm here in the AJC but I think there is a lesson for the whole world from the story of the Jewish people thank you for that we'll have to continue to conjugate for next year [Applause]

Channel: American Jewish Committee

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Length: 33min 1sec (1981 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 06 2017