Singapore-China Relations Will Continue To Develop

Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said he was confident that Singapore's future ties with China would continue to develop. He deeply believed that the future bilateral relations between Singapore and China would be evolved along the original base of cooperation between the two countries. Lee said that an added factor that could help to ensure Singapore's relationship with China would not suddenly break off was the fact that Singapore has many new immigrants coming to settle down in Singapore.

20th Anniversary of Diplomatic Ties
However, he also stressed that as Singapore and China celebrate the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2010, the sustainable diplomatic ties between the two would lie in the added value of what Singapore could offer China. Lee said that no matter how strong Singaporeans' bilingual abilities could be, and no matter how Singapore's culture was closely linked to that of China, Singapore should know for sure that Singapore must be able to play the value added role to China.
In Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's view, the added value Singapore could provide China would include Singapore's in-depth understanding of its neighboring countries in Southeast Asia and Singapore's intimate relationship with countries in Southeast Asia as well as Singapore's understanding of the operational knowledge of western countries that until today, China has not fully understood.
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said this in response to a question on Singapore's future relationship with China. Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew was invited to address at a dialogue organized as part of celebrations to mark the second anniversary of Business China, an organization spearheaded by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry to strengthen cultural and economic ties with China. The dialogue was held at The Pyramid Club on 29 December.
At the dialogue, Minister Mentor Lee also cited personal experience to illustrate the added value Singapore could offer to other countries. He said he knew a number of western national leaders and has developed decades of friendship with a number of former leaders in Europe and in the United States. He said that when these western leaders wanted to know current development in China, they would consult his view. He said his long-standing friendship and close ties with many international leaders were what the Chinese leaders were lacking although the present Chinese leaders shared equal status with world leaders during international conference or dialogue.

Future Direction
On the future direction of Singapore-China relationship, Minister Mentor Lee was quite confident about it. He pointed out that China may become an advanced world power in 50 years' time, but it does not mean that Singapore will be squeezed out. He said Singapore's relationship with China is changing over time and will continue to change. Faced with a more confident China, Minister Mentor Lee said Singapore could always find its unique role to play in other ways.
"This relationship will change over time, but it goes without saying that between the two countries is also a kind of mutual understanding. Do not forget, each year we have many new immigrants from China to settle down in Singapore. As such, the new relation between Singapore and China will continue to develop. This bilateral ties will not be broken. While the nature of the relationship may change, but we will not be static."
When Robin Hu Yee Cheng, chair of Business China and Senior Executive Vice-President of Singapore Press Holdings asked Minister Mentor Lee if he would support his grandson to work in China, Minister Mentor Lee replied, "Definitely, I will definitely support."
Moreover, Minister Mentor Lee also stressed that his "maintaining Singapore's added value" theory could also be applied to individual level. He reminded those Singaporeans who intended to work in China must, in addition to maintain the required language skills and culture, also should bring with them the professional knowledge and expertise that the local Chinese lacked in order to compete with them.
Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said that for Singapore to be an effective player on the world stage, or to maintain relations with China, another factor was that Singaporeans must insist on having own position and principles. He stressed that Singapore must retain its point of view, and not becoming a satellite of other bigger economies such as becoming a satellite country for the United States, Japan or China.

Assessment
In conclusion, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said: "We are a little red dot but we are a special red dot. We are connected with the world. We play a special role in the world. In addition, we are not going to be in anybody's pocket. And if we lose that status, we are meaningless. Because of our status as independent actors, independent observers of situation, when we say something, they say yes that is a Singapore point of view and very often a realistic point of view. If you every take the parrot-like approach to report the viewpoint of the United States, China or Japan, then you will be regarded by others as worthless stuff, a puppet, a parrot. By then you are finished. Being able to maintain our own point of view is something we need to maintain. We do not have to care if other people are not happy with what we can."

World Knocks on Door of 2010

Not only is the New Year beginning today, but the second decade of the 21st century is also beginning from today. It is the beginning of a decade in which it is hoped that big changes would take place at the global level. It is believed around the world that this century would belong to two big Asian nations--India and China, when these two nations would lead the rest of the world with their huge population and economic progress, in the same way as this role was played by the United States and other developed countries in the 20th century.
The next 10 years would prove to be significant in this transformation. This is the reason why in India, we are entering into the new decade with new hopes and possibilities.
The achievements of the last decade give us self-confidence, which is necessary to take the leap into a brighter future. The world today is acknowledging the scientific achievements of a country that was once considered as backward and ignorant. Today, we are competing with several big countries in exploring space. Our Chandrayan (moon mission) and its discoveries have inspired NASA to begin its moon mission again. If the last decade was of IT in the world, nobody can deny the leading role India played in it. Our scientists and professionals will play a big role in making the next decade a decade of India.
Young men whose aspirations seem to be taking new turns would also play a significant role. A kind of revival of people's power is being seen in some parts and sections of the country, but some others are still to witness it. The section that has economic prosperity, education, and employment or industry has expanded a lot, but many sections are still far away from it. It is good that those who are capable are also becoming aware about bridging this gap between them and those who are not as capable as them.
Let us hope that in the coming decade, the world would be free from the demon of terrorism, which painted the past decade red with blood. The experience so far is that policies of "blood for blood" have kept bloodshed going. While welcoming the new decade, let us hope that this bloodshed comes to an end. In the world knocking at the door of 2010, let everybody be happy and successful.

ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement

The ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)-China Free Trade Area Agreement covering 1.9 billion persons in this free trade zone will become effective on 1 January, 2010. After 10 years of efforts between ASEAN and China, the smooth sailing of this significant agreement is a challenging test not only to ASEAN countries but also to China. Beginning 1 January, a new round of tariff reduction between China and six key ASEAN member states namely Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand will see more than 90 percent of the products from both parties with tariffs drop to near zero.
In November 2000, then Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji put forth this idea of the formation of an ASEAN-China free trade zone with the purpose to lift the trade barriers between China and ASEAN member nations, so that China's huge market and ASEAN countries' natural resources could reach a mutually beneficial win-win trade relations.
However, within the past few years, the economy of China has increasingly consolidated and become powerful. This is most noticeable during the global financial turmoil when China's economic performance has continued to be outstanding. The strength of China's economy has become a concern to ASEAN member nations in the midst of the establishment of this ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement. Such concern is in particularly reflected in ASEAN member countries that have high volume of trade dealings with China. The enterprises and business firms in five ASEAN member nations namely Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines are worried that the exemption from customs duties for goods coming from China will challenge their local business survival with an influx of cheaper Chinese goods in the local market.

Advantages and Disadvantages
On contrary, other less economically developed ASEAN countries, including countries that do not even have established stock market mechanism will probably welcome the formation of this ASEAN-China trade agreement. These countries include countries such as Cambodia and Laos. In the case of Laos, under the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement, China would give Laos zero tariffs or less than five percent tariffs of over 7,000 kinds of goods and products import to China. To Laos, having this ASEAN-China free tree agreement will undoubtedly give the country more advantages than disadvantages.
However, to Indonesia, which is the economic engine head of ASEAN, its business enterprises do not think the implementation of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement is a good idea. Erwin, chair of the Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association Chairman has earlier called on the Indonesian Government not to make a rush in the implementation of the free trade area with China. He said that Indonesia had not yet prepared for such a free trade agreement with China. He even warned that when the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement became effective, a number of industrial areas, particularly the small and medium-sized industrial zones and the industries in special economic zones might face the risk of bankruptcy. In view of such concern, the Indonesian Government has now formed a joint committee with the Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industries to gather feedback from business community and entrepreneurs on the impact of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement.
As for Malaysia, although the business community and private sector do not have such a strong rebound over the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement as in Indonesia, nevertheless, some larger enterprises, in particular the automotive industries are concerned about the impact of having a comprehensive free trade agreement with China. This is because the Agreement can have a huge impact level on local automotive industries. If Malaysia were to follow the country's original national automotive policy announced in 2006, Malaysia would fully abolish the permit to import foreign cars by December 2010. But under Malaysia's latest national automotive policy guideline, the abolishment of the AP (Approved license to import foreign car) system has furthered been delayed to 2015.
Although the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement will become effective on 1 January, all indications have shown that to most ASEAN member countries, this new free trade agreement with China comes with mixed felling of happiness and worry. We can even say ASEAN member nations are more worried about the impact of this Agreement than happy about the new trade opportunities available. When market force of China's 1.3 billion populations and ASEAN's total 600 million population combine and compete in the same market, it is quite natural for varied businesses and enterprises in ASEAN countries to worry about the impact of it. The ASEAN business community and enterprises are concerned whether an ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement concept that was mooted ten years ago could still hold the original goal in allowing mutual and win-win trade between ASEAN and China to reap fruitful result ten years later. This is because over the past ten years, the China's economy today has growth much stronger now than ten years ago. There is a concern on the part of some ASEAN countries that the implementation of the free trade agreement with China now will eventually lead to trade imbalance between ASEAN and China. Some ASEAN member nations are afraid that there will be increased trade in favor of China rather than in favor of ASEAN member countries. This is because China is a huge country with not only huge market for domestic consumption but also a strong ability to export and supplies cheaper goods to the ASEAN region.

Importance of Agreement
Even so, we have to accept the fact that the engine head of this ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement has already started running. We cannot pull the button and stop its advancement. This ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement is not only China's first free trade area agreement in foreign trade; it is also the first free trade zone agreement ASEAN negotiated with a foreign nation. As such, the importance of this ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement cannot be undermined. The importance of ASEAN's trade agreement with China will become particularly significance when under this free trade agreement ASEAN nations begin to use China's renminbi (yuan) as the major trading currency when engaging trade with China. Such development can greatly enhance the possibility that China's renminbi or yuan will eventually become a major global trading currency in addition to the US dollars.
Overall, we can only say that the birth of ASEAN-China Free Trade Area Agreement is a necessity product in the current regional economic environment. However, whether this Agreement can be achieved and reaped the expected result will, to a great degree, depend on how ASEAN member countries can maintain a united stance on the vast and varied goods and products entered into the Agreement with China as near zero tariffs products. If ASEAN member countries cannot stand united as one and begin to have different version of free trade area with China, then as a whole, it is impossible for ASEAN to reap trade benefits from the huge Chinese market.