MANILA \u2013 Singapore is trying to make the point to the United States that it is \u201cnot a target\u201d of Washington\u2019s tariff policy, and to avoid becoming collateral damage as the Trump administration raises tariffs on trading partners around the world<\/span><\/a>, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said on July 23.<\/p>\n Speaking to Singapore media after wrapping up a week of meetings at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers\u2019 Meeting in Manila, Balakrishnan said he had raised the matter during a bilateral meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know as well as I do that the American administration, for its own domestic political reasons, needs to raise tariff revenue. I\u2019m not going to give you details of my discussion, but I am trying to find a way to make the point that Singapore is not a target of the US \u2013 not at all,\u201d he said, adding that they had a \u201cgood, candid and honest-to-goodness discussion\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cHe understands us, he knows Singapore, and he\u2019s obviously someone who\u2019s got wide experience in both diplomacy and economics. I made the point quite categorically that the US has a trade surplus against us, and in fact it is growing, and on that basis, there really is no technical or economic basis to impose tariffs upon us.\u201d<\/p>\n Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in a bilateral meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers\u2019 Meeting in Manila on July 23.<\/p>\n PHOTO: MFA<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n The discussion came a day before the expiry of the Trump administration\u2019s temporary 10 per cent across-the-board import surcharge, after which Washington is expected to roll out new global tariff measures.<\/p>\n The Trump administration has signalled that more targeted tariffs under Section 301 could follow, authorising duties against countries found to have engaged in unfair trade practices following an investigation.<\/p>\n Singapore has rejected suggestions that it engages in unfair trade practices, including the use of forced labour in supply chains, and has told the US that it does not condone such practices.<\/p>\n Beyond Singapore\u2019s discussions with Washington, Balakrishnan said the uncertainty over US tariffs has reinforced the need for ASEAN to deepen economic integration and enhance its resilience.<\/p>\n Asked about Singapore\u2019s priorities when it assumes the ASEAN chairmanship in 2027<\/span><\/a>, he pointed to three broad themes: maintaining ASEAN centrality, building resilience and strengthening regional integration.<\/p>\n Despite growing rivalry between Washington and Beijing, Balakrishnan said both powers had approached this week\u2019s meetings in a \u201ccareful, deliberate and constructive way\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cTo their credit, both of them are trying to approach this in a careful, deliberate and constructive way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He welcomed the fact that neither side had sought to force ASEAN countries to choose between them, saying both understood that the region\u2019s priorities remained economic development, access to technology and free trade.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a time to be careful. This is a time to work together. This is a time, particularly for the middle powers and the rest of us in ASEAN, to affirm international law, the habits of cooperation, to work on the basis of multilateralism, and not to resort to unilateral or coercive measures,\u201d Balakrishnan said.<\/p>\n He credited Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and Foreign Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro for steering the grouping through what he described as \u201cquite a tumultuous period\u201d marked by war, supply chain disruptions and contestation between major powers.<\/p>\n \u201cThe best way to enhance resilience is to work together, integrate our economies, to make sure that we do not panic and we do not put obstacles or restrictions in each other\u2019s way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Among the most difficult issues discussed during the week was Myanmar, where ASEAN continues to insist that any change in the regional grouping\u2019s engagement with the military authorities must be tied to measurable progress under the Five-Point Consensus peace plan<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n Balakrishnan said those benchmarks included reducing or ending violence against civilians and vulnerable groups, releasing political prisoners and ensuring that humanitarian assistance reaches all those in need, regardless of political affiliation.<\/p>\n Asked whether detained former Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi<\/span><\/a> risked being used as a political bargaining chip, he rejected the characterisation.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s not a chip to be bargained over,\u201d he said. \u201cShe\u2019s the leader of a political party which clearly enjoys significant support in Myanmar.\u201d<\/p>\n Balakrishnan said Suu Kyi\u2019s release should be seen as a means to enable reconciliation rather than an end in itself.<\/p>\n \u201cThe purpose of the release is not just release for release\u2019s sake, but in order to enable honest-to-goodness conversations, reconciliation and a solution that is Myanmar-led and owned by the Myanmar people themselves,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Asked whether ASEAN had seen enough progress to justify adjusting its approach, Balakrishnan was unequivocal.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you ask me, has there been significant progress? Not enough progress, and certainly no progress since last week. So let\u2019s not be premature.\u201d<\/p>\n He also cautioned against defining progress too narrowly through access to Suu Kyi alone, saying the larger test was whether violence had stopped, reconciliation had begun and political prisoners had been released.<\/p>\n Myanmar remained a tragedy, he said, but ASEAN also needed to devote its political attention to other urgent challenges and opportunities.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really need to focus our bandwidth, our minds and our political capital on creating the future, and not being stuck repeating yesterday\u2019s wars, and winding up hostility and grievances for which there\u2019s no easy solution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Beyond Myanmar, Balakrishnan said events further afield \u2013 including conflict in the Middle East\u2013 had reinforced ASEAN\u2019s need to strengthen its energy resilience.<\/p>\n While ASEAN had little influence over when or how the conflict would be resolved, he said the region had considerable untapped potential in solar, wind, geothermal, oil and gas that could make it more secure and less vulnerable to external shocks.<\/p>\n These, he noted, require \u201cinvestment, capital and technology in order to bring to fruition\u201d \u2013 and recent events have raised that sense of urgency.<\/p>\n Balakrishnan cited the ASEAN Power Grid<\/span><\/a> as a key project, saying it was about more than laying cables, settling fees or addressing technical concerns.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is to create a sense that we are all better off if we can engage in collective investments, in raising our capacity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt makes us more resilient. It makes us more competitive, and it better prepares us for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n The opportunity and need had long been present, he added, but recent events have raised the pressure on ASEAN to turn plans into action.<\/p>\n \u201cThe challenge is execution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n On July 21, the ASEAN foreign ministers issued a joint statement expressing concern over renewed hostilities and called for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n The ministers will gather on July 24 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, the landmark pact that enshrined ASEAN\u2019s principles of mutual respect, non-interference and the peaceful settlement of disputes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n MANILA \u2013 Singapore is trying to make the point to the United States that it is \u201cnot a target\u201d of Washington\u2019s tariff policy, and to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":71129,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=71128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/71129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=71128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=71128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=71128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/picture><\/div>
Myanmar\u2019s Suu Kyi not a bargaining chip<\/h2>\n
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