PM Lee’s speech on Sino-US ties well received in China
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's speech at the opening of the Shangri-La Dialogue on Friday last week has struck a chord with the Chinese.
The full-text of the speech has been shared widely on Chinese social media platforms, with state media outlets also publishing excerpts. Chinese netizens and experts have praised it as an objective assessment of Sino-US ties.
Yesterday, Beijing also gave an official nod to the PM Lee's statements, with its Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang expressing appreciation.
Mr Lee had spoken about how there was a mutual lack of strategic trust between the US and China.
Attitudes in both countries have hardened but it was in the interests of both sides to reach an accommodation with each other, he said.
PM Lee also mentioned that countries needed to accept China's rise, which in turn must take on larger global responsibilities.
"The bottom line is that the US and China need to work together, and with other countries too, to bring the global system up to date and not upend the system.
"To succeed in this, each must understand the other's point of view and reconcile each other's interests," he said.
Asked about the speech by a journalist from state-run China Daily at a regular press briefing, Mr Geng said that countries in the region wanted peaceful development, openness and inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation, instead of conflict and confrontation, and that Mr Lee's speech reflected this widely held desire.
Ties between the US and China are becoming increasingly fraught - trade talks have broken down and both parties are locked in an escalating trade war, while disputes over technology are also brewing.
It is an issue that domestic audiences here are becoming increasingly concerned about.
Mr Lee's speech was shared widely on Chinese social media platforms WeChat and Weibo, with some posts reaching upwards of 100,000 views. State-run Global Times and broadcaster CCTV also ran excerpts on their accounts.
Many netizens said Mr Lee's speech was a "strategic" and "far-sighted" view of the conflict.
"I hope China's experts will be able to distil some wisdom from this to solve the US-China conflict," said one netizen.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now
