(Photo: weforum.org)
In the dialogue with the World Economic Forum (WEF) President Borge Brende. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said some his main concerns centred around US, China and Globalisation
IN his introduction, WEF President Borge Bende said for the first time 50% of the global GDP is coming from Asia and that, “Singapore’s leadership is crucial. So I think all the people coming here are looking forward to hearing your views, Prime Minister , on the geopolitical outlook aspirations
for Singapore.”
PM Lee said that while Singapore has done reasonably well over the last half century there were external factors that are very important to the Island Republic: the US, China and gloablisation: “Now we are at a turning point as all three factors are changing.” He went on at length to explain what can be done to mitigate and overcome these challenges.
On the international front the Prime Minister commented on future prospects with the signing of the first part of the trade agreement by US and China in Washington in January 2020. He said: “We are relentlessly optimistic but not that much so. I do not think it (geopolitcal confrontations and competition) has peaked at all. It is a very serious issue. How does an incumbent hyper power like the US accommodate a rising new power – China – which is going to grow as a percentage of the world’s GDP, which is going to grow and develop in terms of the sophistication of its economy, and which in absolute size is going to become larger than the US, although not more advanced than the US for many years to come? But it will become larger very soon, if it has not already.”
The wide ranging interview covered issues that also touched on the potential of technology for future growth as well as the impact on it in a world with increasing geopolitical competition, as also lessons garnered from the last global economic slowdown and societal and democratic effects from growth of social media.
Click here for Video Link of the Interview and here for the Transcript.
