He rebuts claims by Chinese academic that Republic is taking sides against China
By Kor Kian Beng, China Bureau Chief In Beijing, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2016
Singapore, being a good friend of both China and the United States, does not see a growing Chinese role in the region as being at the expense of US contributions to the region, the Republic's Ambassador to China Stanley Loh has said.
In a letter published yesterday, Mr Loh warned against being caught in a zero-sum mentality, saying Singapore agrees with what Chinese and US leaders have said - that the Asia-Pacific is big enough to accommodate both powers.
"As recently articulated by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US and China should 'cultivate common circles of friends' and Singapore is part of this common circle of friendship," he wrote, referring to Mr Xi's remarks at the start of an annual Sino-US dialogue on Monday.
The Singapore envoy was rebutting the "completely wrong" view put forward by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences researcher Cheng Bifan that Singapore was taking sides against China on issues such as the South China Sea territorial disputes.
Dr Cheng's commentary was published on June 1 in the Chinese edition of the Global Times, a tabloid linked to the Communist Party.
He was responding to an April 29 commentary in the Global Times by former China Aviation Oil chief executive Chen Jiulin, who urged Singapore to support China's stance that the South China Sea disputes should be resolved through bilateral negotiations among claimant states.
Dr Cheng's commentary, titled "Singapore has picked the wrong target in its balance of powers strategy", cited actions by the Singapore Government and remarks by its leaders as evidence to back his claim that Singapore was taking sides against China.
He criticised Singapore's moves to let US military planes and naval vessels be based in the city-state.
By Kor Kian Beng, China Bureau Chief In Beijing, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2016
In a letter published yesterday, Mr Loh warned against being caught in a zero-sum mentality, saying Singapore agrees with what Chinese and US leaders have said - that the Asia-Pacific is big enough to accommodate both powers.
"As recently articulated by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US and China should 'cultivate common circles of friends' and Singapore is part of this common circle of friendship," he wrote, referring to Mr Xi's remarks at the start of an annual Sino-US dialogue on Monday.
The Singapore envoy was rebutting the "completely wrong" view put forward by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences researcher Cheng Bifan that Singapore was taking sides against China on issues such as the South China Sea territorial disputes.
Dr Cheng's commentary was published on June 1 in the Chinese edition of the Global Times, a tabloid linked to the Communist Party.
He was responding to an April 29 commentary in the Global Times by former China Aviation Oil chief executive Chen Jiulin, who urged Singapore to support China's stance that the South China Sea disputes should be resolved through bilateral negotiations among claimant states.
Dr Cheng's commentary, titled "Singapore has picked the wrong target in its balance of powers strategy", cited actions by the Singapore Government and remarks by its leaders as evidence to back his claim that Singapore was taking sides against China.
He criticised Singapore's moves to let US military planes and naval vessels be based in the city-state.
"This has turned Singapore into a platform for the US to contain and deter China, and at times it seems even more anxious to boost hegemony in Asia-Pacific than the US itself."
Dr Cheng said Singapore also "leaned towards Japan", citing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's remarks at a Tokyo conference in 2013 that China could lose its global standing if it were to use force in the East Asia Sea dispute with Japan.
"Singapore should reflect on this: Can it state clearly in what ways has China threatened its safety? Can it sustain the contradictory two-faced approach towards China?
"If the South China Sea conflict between China and the US deepens, and the US drags Singapore in, will Singapore remain safe?" he added.
Mr Loh, in his letter published on the Global Times' English and Chinese websites, said various Singapore leaders' comments cited by Dr Cheng had been taken out of context and were "a gross distortion of what was actually said".
According to media reports, the Singapore Foreign Ministry in 2013 said Mr Lee had made his remarks - reported then by Global Times - in the context of a broader question on whether regional countries should band together to encircle China.
According to media reports, the Singapore Foreign Ministry in 2013 said Mr Lee had made his remarks - reported then by Global Times - in the context of a broader question on whether regional countries should band together to encircle China.
Mr Lee had rejected such an approach as neither constructive nor helpful as every country in the region had benefited from China's progress and hoped to cultivate good ties with Beijing. He also pointed out that Chinese leaders understood the need for the country to develop in a peaceful way that would not threaten its neighbours.
In his letter, Mr Loh also cited how Singapore had supported China's development over the years and also its initiatives like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.
It had also played a "facilitative" role in cross-strait relations, such as hosting the first-ever meeting between the top leaders of China and Taiwan last November.
"This was possible only because Singapore has maintained a principled and consistent stand on this issue," Mr Loh wrote.
Similarly, Singapore, though not a claimant state, has taken a principled stand on the South China Sea, emphasising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, which are vital national interests.
"China's rise will cause a major shift in the strategic environment, especially for small countries like Singapore.
"We hope that possible friction points, such as the South China Sea, will not derail the overall positive trajectory," Mr Loh said.
Singapore's position on China and the U.S.
The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
"A dinner is a dinner, but it's a signal of the importance of the US to us, and our view of the US in the region.
You may have noticed that our ambassador in China has just written a letter to the Global Times to state our position on this. We welcome China's development and its growing influence in the region, but at the same time, we value American engagement and we don't see China's growing influence as necessarily being at the expense of America's contributions to the region, or Singapore's relations with the US.
Just as I'm visiting China for the G-20 and ASEAN summits, it's good also to cultivate our relationship with America.
The Obama administration particularly has put in an exceptional effort to focus on Asia-Pacific. Mr Obama has paid a lot of attention. He himself has attended ASEAN meetings regularly. It was (during) his administration in the first term that the US joined the East Asia Summit.
My visit is to mark what has been a very good relationship with the Obama administration, and I hope to see how we can keep things going beyond November and January into the next administration."
- PM LEE, when asked about the state dinner US President Barack Obama will host for him at the White House in August. He also referred to a recent commentary in China's communist party-linked tabloid Global Times, which said Singapore is taking sides against China on issues such as the South China Sea territorial disputes by allowing US military planes and naval vessels to be based in the city-state.
The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
You may have noticed that our ambassador in China has just written a letter to the Global Times to state our position on this. We welcome China's development and its growing influence in the region, but at the same time, we value American engagement and we don't see China's growing influence as necessarily being at the expense of America's contributions to the region, or Singapore's relations with the US.
Just as I'm visiting China for the G-20 and ASEAN summits, it's good also to cultivate our relationship with America.
The Obama administration particularly has put in an exceptional effort to focus on Asia-Pacific. Mr Obama has paid a lot of attention. He himself has attended ASEAN meetings regularly. It was (during) his administration in the first term that the US joined the East Asia Summit.
My visit is to mark what has been a very good relationship with the Obama administration, and I hope to see how we can keep things going beyond November and January into the next administration."
- PM LEE, when asked about the state dinner US President Barack Obama will host for him at the White House in August. He also referred to a recent commentary in China's communist party-linked tabloid Global Times, which said Singapore is taking sides against China on issues such as the South China Sea territorial disputes by allowing US military planes and naval vessels to be based in the city-state.
Singapore is part of common circle of friendship of US and China
Singpore's Ambassador to the People's Republic of China Stanley Loh wrote this commentary, published on Wednesday in the Global Times. He was rebutting an earlier article on June 1 that criticised Singapore for taking sides and being "two-faced" when it comes to the United States and China.
By Stanley Loh, Published The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
A commentary by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences researcher Cheng Bifan, entitled "Singapore has picked the wrong target in its balance of powers strategy", published in the Global Times' Chinese edition on June 1, suggests that Singapore has taken sides against China. This view is completely wrong.
Singapore is a good friend of both the United States and China. We do support the US engagement in the region. The US has been a benign force that has undergirded stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific since the end of World War II. China too has benefited from this regional stability and prosperity, which has provided the conditions for China's rapid growth since its opening up in 1978.
We are also supportive of China's peaceful development. We welcome China's active participation in a rules-based international order and look forward to it playing a growing and constructive role in regional prosperity and peace.
Hence, Singapore has supported China's development, even through the difficult post-1989 period. We began discussions with China on the first government-to- government cooperation project, in Suzhou, in 1992. Singapore was one of the first ASEAN countries to participate in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. We also look forward to cooperating with China and other stakeholders on the One Belt, One Road initiative.
In cross-straits relations, Singapore has played a facilitative role. We hosted the Wang-Koo talks in 1993 and the first ever meeting between the top leaders from both sides last year. This was possible only because Singapore has maintained a principled and consistent stand on this issue.
China-Singapore ties have broadened and deepened over the decades. We have supported China's development as China's needs and priorities evolved. Following the Suzhou project, both sides launched flagship government-to-government projects in Tianjin and Chongqing.
We should avoid getting caught in a zero-sum mentality. Singapore fully agrees with what the leaders of both the US and China have said - that the Asia-Pacific is big enough to accommodate both powers. We do not see a growing Chinese role in the region as being at the expense of US contributions to regional stability, security and prosperity. As recently articulated by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US and China should "cultivate common circles of friends" and Singapore is part of this common circle of friendship.
China's rise will cause a major shift in the strategic environment, especially for small countries like Singapore. We hope that possible friction points, such as the South China Sea, will not derail the overall positive trajectory. Singapore has taken a principled stand on the South China Sea, emphasising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, which are vital national interests. We are not a claimant state and do not take sides on competing territorial claims. We support the peaceful resolution of disputes, in accordance with international law, including Unclos.
I note that Mr Cheng cited comments by various Singapore leaders. These comments were taken out of context and are a gross distortion of what was actually said.
Singpore's Ambassador to the People's Republic of China Stanley Loh wrote this commentary, published on Wednesday in the Global Times. He was rebutting an earlier article on June 1 that criticised Singapore for taking sides and being "two-faced" when it comes to the United States and China.
By Stanley Loh, Published The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
A commentary by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences researcher Cheng Bifan, entitled "Singapore has picked the wrong target in its balance of powers strategy", published in the Global Times' Chinese edition on June 1, suggests that Singapore has taken sides against China. This view is completely wrong.
Singapore is a good friend of both the United States and China. We do support the US engagement in the region. The US has been a benign force that has undergirded stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific since the end of World War II. China too has benefited from this regional stability and prosperity, which has provided the conditions for China's rapid growth since its opening up in 1978.
We are also supportive of China's peaceful development. We welcome China's active participation in a rules-based international order and look forward to it playing a growing and constructive role in regional prosperity and peace.
Hence, Singapore has supported China's development, even through the difficult post-1989 period. We began discussions with China on the first government-to- government cooperation project, in Suzhou, in 1992. Singapore was one of the first ASEAN countries to participate in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. We also look forward to cooperating with China and other stakeholders on the One Belt, One Road initiative.
In cross-straits relations, Singapore has played a facilitative role. We hosted the Wang-Koo talks in 1993 and the first ever meeting between the top leaders from both sides last year. This was possible only because Singapore has maintained a principled and consistent stand on this issue.
China-Singapore ties have broadened and deepened over the decades. We have supported China's development as China's needs and priorities evolved. Following the Suzhou project, both sides launched flagship government-to-government projects in Tianjin and Chongqing.
We should avoid getting caught in a zero-sum mentality. Singapore fully agrees with what the leaders of both the US and China have said - that the Asia-Pacific is big enough to accommodate both powers. We do not see a growing Chinese role in the region as being at the expense of US contributions to regional stability, security and prosperity. As recently articulated by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the US and China should "cultivate common circles of friends" and Singapore is part of this common circle of friendship.
China's rise will cause a major shift in the strategic environment, especially for small countries like Singapore. We hope that possible friction points, such as the South China Sea, will not derail the overall positive trajectory. Singapore has taken a principled stand on the South China Sea, emphasising the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, which are vital national interests. We are not a claimant state and do not take sides on competing territorial claims. We support the peaceful resolution of disputes, in accordance with international law, including Unclos.
I note that Mr Cheng cited comments by various Singapore leaders. These comments were taken out of context and are a gross distortion of what was actually said.
Why the concerns over rising China?
This is a commentary by Cheng Bifan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing. It was published in the Global Times' Chinese edition on June 1.
By Cheng Bifan, Published The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
Mr Chen Jiulin (founder of Beijing Joseph Investment Co and former CEO of China Aviation Oil) wrote an opinion piece, "Singapore should support China's South China Sea stand too", in the Global Times recently, hoping that Singapore "will stop using US' power consistently to contain China". Mr Chen has good intentions, but I think it is quite difficult for Singapore to change its stand. A rough recap will provide some understanding of how Singapore's views on security came about.
Singapore was at a loss when it was forced to leave Malaysia in August 1965. Fortunately, the strong leadership of the People's Action Party crafted a survival and development strategy to transform Singapore into a "global city". Simply put, it is to take advantage of Singapore's excellent geographical location and conditions to bring in capital from Western nations led by the United States, thereby giving the West a vested interest in Singapore. That way, not only will they help Singapore in economic development, but they will also provide security against attacks from Singapore's hostile neighbours. According to Lee Kuan Yew, this is called the "balance of powers strategy". If one recalls, in the early 1970s, he once clarified that "balance of powers" did not mean two evenly matched sides in a confrontation but rather a "state of stability". There was already a so-called claim of "Pax Americana" at the time, and Singapore's security was mainly to take shelter under US wings, and in the eyes of Lee Kuan Yew, "balance of powers" actually meant American hegemony.
For a long time after Singapore's independence, its "balance of powers strategy" was mainly targeted at hostile neighbours. After the opening up of China, Singapore enjoyed good relations with China and took a prominent position among ASEAN countries in forming economic and trade ties with it.
But as we entered the 21st century with the swift rise of China, Singapore partook in the benefits brought about by China's rapid development, and at the same time gradually directed the "balance of powers strategy" towards China.
Some say that Singapore's behaviour was a kind of suspicion and apprehension commonly harboured by small nations against big countries, so it is not a surprising move. But I think that, even if small and medium-sized neighbours did harbour varying degrees of apprehension towards China, Singapore's position stood out considerably.
Firstly, Singapore leaders and think-tank scholars have hinted on several occasions that China will get aggressive once it becomes powerful.
Among them, Lee Kuan Yew once said the very name "China" meant "Middle Kingdom", and that "many small and medium countries in Asia are concerned. They are uneasy that China may want to resume the imperial status it had in earlier centuries, and have misgivings about being treated as vassal states". As Singapore is a country with a predominantly Chinese population, the international community has mistakenly perceived Singapore to possess a better understanding of China. Therefore, the above-mentioned opinion is rather misleading.
Secondly, Singapore is not an official military ally of the US, but it did not hesitate to allow US littoral combat ships to station at Changi Naval Base, and recently, the deployment of a P-8 spy plane. This has turned Singapore into a platform for the US to contain and deter China, and at times it seems even more anxious to boost hegemony in the Asia-Pacific than the US itself.
Thirdly, not only did Singapore "take sides" on the South China Sea issue, it also leaned towards Japan on the Diaoyu islands dispute. When Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong visited Japan in August 2013, he reminded China that "whether it is the Senkaku islands (Diaoyu islands), whether it is the South China Sea", if China uses force, it will lose in terms of its broader reputation and standing in the world.
Such "hard-hitting" actions and comments from Singapore have increasingly drawn criticism from Chinese academics and in public opinion. In reality, there have already been voices and opinions from academics and the people which are different from the government's official stance.
Singapore should reflect on this: Can it state clearly in what ways China has threatened its safety? Can it sustain the contradictory two-faced approach towards China? If the South China Sea conflict between China and the US deepens, and the US drags Singapore in, will Singapore remain safe?
Translated by Kua Yu-Lin.
This is a commentary by Cheng Bifan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing. It was published in the Global Times' Chinese edition on June 1.
By Cheng Bifan, Published The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2016
Mr Chen Jiulin (founder of Beijing Joseph Investment Co and former CEO of China Aviation Oil) wrote an opinion piece, "Singapore should support China's South China Sea stand too", in the Global Times recently, hoping that Singapore "will stop using US' power consistently to contain China". Mr Chen has good intentions, but I think it is quite difficult for Singapore to change its stand. A rough recap will provide some understanding of how Singapore's views on security came about.
Singapore was at a loss when it was forced to leave Malaysia in August 1965. Fortunately, the strong leadership of the People's Action Party crafted a survival and development strategy to transform Singapore into a "global city". Simply put, it is to take advantage of Singapore's excellent geographical location and conditions to bring in capital from Western nations led by the United States, thereby giving the West a vested interest in Singapore. That way, not only will they help Singapore in economic development, but they will also provide security against attacks from Singapore's hostile neighbours. According to Lee Kuan Yew, this is called the "balance of powers strategy". If one recalls, in the early 1970s, he once clarified that "balance of powers" did not mean two evenly matched sides in a confrontation but rather a "state of stability". There was already a so-called claim of "Pax Americana" at the time, and Singapore's security was mainly to take shelter under US wings, and in the eyes of Lee Kuan Yew, "balance of powers" actually meant American hegemony.
For a long time after Singapore's independence, its "balance of powers strategy" was mainly targeted at hostile neighbours. After the opening up of China, Singapore enjoyed good relations with China and took a prominent position among ASEAN countries in forming economic and trade ties with it.
But as we entered the 21st century with the swift rise of China, Singapore partook in the benefits brought about by China's rapid development, and at the same time gradually directed the "balance of powers strategy" towards China.
Some say that Singapore's behaviour was a kind of suspicion and apprehension commonly harboured by small nations against big countries, so it is not a surprising move. But I think that, even if small and medium-sized neighbours did harbour varying degrees of apprehension towards China, Singapore's position stood out considerably.
Firstly, Singapore leaders and think-tank scholars have hinted on several occasions that China will get aggressive once it becomes powerful.
Among them, Lee Kuan Yew once said the very name "China" meant "Middle Kingdom", and that "many small and medium countries in Asia are concerned. They are uneasy that China may want to resume the imperial status it had in earlier centuries, and have misgivings about being treated as vassal states". As Singapore is a country with a predominantly Chinese population, the international community has mistakenly perceived Singapore to possess a better understanding of China. Therefore, the above-mentioned opinion is rather misleading.
Secondly, Singapore is not an official military ally of the US, but it did not hesitate to allow US littoral combat ships to station at Changi Naval Base, and recently, the deployment of a P-8 spy plane. This has turned Singapore into a platform for the US to contain and deter China, and at times it seems even more anxious to boost hegemony in the Asia-Pacific than the US itself.
Thirdly, not only did Singapore "take sides" on the South China Sea issue, it also leaned towards Japan on the Diaoyu islands dispute. When Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong visited Japan in August 2013, he reminded China that "whether it is the Senkaku islands (Diaoyu islands), whether it is the South China Sea", if China uses force, it will lose in terms of its broader reputation and standing in the world.
Such "hard-hitting" actions and comments from Singapore have increasingly drawn criticism from Chinese academics and in public opinion. In reality, there have already been voices and opinions from academics and the people which are different from the government's official stance.
Singapore should reflect on this: Can it state clearly in what ways China has threatened its safety? Can it sustain the contradictory two-faced approach towards China? If the South China Sea conflict between China and the US deepens, and the US drags Singapore in, will Singapore remain safe?
Translated by Kua Yu-Lin.
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