At a dialogue held by the Council on Foreign Relations earlier this week, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong did not take kindly to a question from a reporter from TIME magazine, interrupting her even before she could finish her question.
TIME’s Kimberly Dozier began led with, “I wanted to ask if the Biden administration had accepted your proffered role as Beijing-whisperer, and also on Capitol Hill…”
PM Lee cuts in and says point-blank, “Sorry, ’I’m not a Beijing whisperer,” but softens the blow a little bit with a laugh.
And when Ms Dozier shoots back with her follow-up, “Could you be?” the Prime Minister stays firm, saying, “No, we cannot.”
“We are not part of the family. We are an ethnic Chinese majority country in South East Asia. Multi-racial, multi-religious, with independent national interests and priorities.
And they treat us as such. And we remind them that, that is so.”
The short exchange between PM Lee and the journalist was shared on Twitter by Dhevarajan Devadas, who goes by @historyogi on the platform.
PM Lee is quick to correct @KimDozier's question at the @CFR_org dialogue about "Singapore's proffered role as Beijing whisperer" for America . He reiterates that Singapore is a multiracial & multireligious country with independent national interests & cannot speak for China. pic.twitter.com/Bcf2utNJhz
— Dhevarajan Devadas (@historyogi) March 31, 2022
His tweet has been viewed almost 30,000 times.
Ms Dozier, who had been tagged in the tweet, replied, saying that “PM is just very good at dodging uncomfortable questions!” but doubling down on her point that “US officials have long considered Singapore a Beijing whisperer, able to explain & bridge at least some of the chasm with China, given its close trade ties.”
This did not go over well with some netizens.
Ms Dozier later tweeted that she had meant the comment as a compliment, and said she was baffled that some had taken it as an insult.
PM Lee has been on a working visit to the United States since Mar 26, which will last until April 2, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) announced on Mar 25.
His first stop was in Washington DC, where he met with US President Joseph Biden, Vice-President Kamala Harris and other Cabinet secretaries, and then with senior members of the US Senate and House of Representatives.
This is his first trip to the US since President Biden was elected in November 2020, as well as his first overseas trip since the beginning of the pandemic.
PM Lee was last in the US in September 2019, when he delivered Singapore’s national statement at the United Nations General Assembly.
The PMO had also announced on Mar 25 that PM Lee PM would also participate in a dialogue at the Council on Foreign Relations, a US think-tank that focuses on international relations and America’s foreign policy.
A transcript of the dialogue, which took place on Thursday (Mar 31) was posted by the PMO and can be found here. /TISG
Those who choose to take Covid-19 vaccine will receive “tangible benefits”