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Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke to CCTV on 24 March. This photo shows PM Lee at the PN-UPI Linkage Virtual Launch, 21 February 2023. (Ministry of Communications and Information, Singapore)

Lee Hsien Loong: The world cannot afford a conflict between China and the US

In an interview on CCTV-13’s “Leaders Talk”《高端访谈》programme first broadcast on 24 March, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke about trust and mutual understanding in longstanding Singapore-China bilateral relations, and expressed the hope that both countries would take this forward in areas such as the Belt and Road Initiative, China-ASEAN relations, China's rise and US-China relations. The following are edited excerpts of the full transcript of the interview issued by Singapore's Prime Minister’s Office.
Employees react amid the chaos as Chinese and Indonesian workers clash at a nickel smelter in Morowali, Sulawesi, Indonesia in this undated social media video released 16 January 2023. (Revi Limbong via Reuters)

Workers' riot in a Chinese nickel company in Indonesia: Could it have been prevented?

A recent conflict between Indonesian workers and Chinese workers at a nickel smelter in Indonesia's North Morowali regency brings into focus several issues concerning Chinese investments in Indonesia, poor working environments, and bad treatment of local workers. Authorities must carefully manage the issue of migrant workers and balance national policy goals with local communities' interests.
Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia's prime minister, speaks during an interview in Singapore, on 30 January 2023. (Ore Huiying/Bloomberg)

Anwar's China policy

While it is still unclear if the Anwar Ibrahim administration has a clear China policy in place, the general trajectory is a positive posture towards China. Even so, the relationship can be expanded and strengthened beyond economic numbers to channelling the benefits of cooperation to local SMEs, and broadening cooperation to areas where the prime minister has shown great personal interest, such as inter-civilisational dialogue.
Passengers from China's Xiamen arrive at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport after China reopens its borders amid the Covid-19 pandemic, in Bangkok, Thailand, 9 January 2023. (Athit Perawongmetha/Reuters)

How China and ASEAN could help each other transition to the new normal

Researcher Peng Nian notes that China’s efforts to strengthen its relations with ASEAN through building a “community with a shared future for mankind” could ramp up as its borders reopen. While it may take time for the ASEAN member states to open their arms again to China, progress is far from being at a standstill.
A screen grab from a video featuring an aerial view of the China-Thailand railway, October 2022. (Internet)

Long-delayed Thailand-China high-speed train: A political game on two tracks

The beleaguered construction and murky progress of the proposed Bangkok-Nong Khai high-speed railway are emblematic of deeper problems underlying Thailand’s and China’s infrastructural ambitions.
Leader of Maoist Centre Party Pushpa Kamal Dahal (right), better known by his nom de guerre Prachanda, waves next to Communist Party Nepal-Union Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) chairman KP Oli, before leaving for the president's office to claim majority for his appointment as the new prime minister, in Bhaktapur on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal, on 25 December 2022. (Dipesh Shrestha/AFP)

Which way Nepal is heading: China, India or the US

After its elections in November 2022, Nepal is now led by a new coalition government formed by parties of the Left Alliance. However, volatile relations and power struggles especially between the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) and the Maoist Centre could mean difficulties in making decisions and implementing policies. The top leaders also have different ideas about foreign relations and great power politics.
Italian Prime Minister and leader of Brothers of Italy party Giorgia Meloni gestures as she attends an event to mark the 10th anniversary of the foundation of Brothers of Italy party in Rome, Italy, 17 December 2022. (Remo Casilli/Reuters)

Italy’s right-wing government can't make up its mind about China?

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her party seem to be adopting a see-saw position on China, notes Italian academic Alessandro Albana. In contrast to voicing strong criticisms in the run-up to the elections, the new right-wing government seems to be engaging China, not least with PM Meloni striking a rapport with China’s President Xi Jinping at the G20 Summit in Bali. Do economic imperatives trump election rhetoric after all?
European Council President Charles Michel (left), Indonesian President Joko Widodo (centre), and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, at the EU-ASEAN Commemorative summit in Brussels, Belgium, on 14 December 2022. (Valeria Mongelli/Bloomberg)

EU could be ASEAN’s best bet in hedging against US-China rivalry uncertainties

The ASEAN-EU Summit in Brussels highlighted potential areas for closer cooperation between the two regional blocs, provided leaders can surmount strategic and other differences at this tricky juncture in world politics.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (left) shakes hands with Indonesian President Joko Widodo as he arrives for the G20 summit in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on 15 November 2022. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool/AFP)

Indonesia-China relations in review: After the G20 Summit

At the G20 Summit held in Bali under the Indonesian G20 presidency, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indonesian President Joko Widodo showed warmth when witnessing remotely the test run of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Rail and undertaking bilateral talks. However, while economic relations are on a strong and steady track, sovereignty issues in the South China Sea continue to be a thorn in one’s side.