6/02/2016

The Undiplomatic Diplomat

Yes, being a little red dot, Singapore is often forced to walk the tight rope in international politics, between the super powers, and juggling our core relations with the Israelis that came to our aid in our time of needs and our two giant neighbours that are more sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. It is not a job for kids to think that Singapore has an easy task to dribble around these powerful forces and to live on unhurt or unscathed. This balancing act not only demands great diplomacy and contortionist act, but also the quality of great statesmanship to steer through the rough sea. Children should never attempt to do what is normally done by adults. Acting big, talking big and thinking big are different from whether people think you are big and if you are up to it.

The difficult job in diplomacy needs not be made more difficult by callous talks and insinuation to ruffle the feathers of interested powers unnecessary. Yes. LKY did that and got away with it. But he was LKY and he could do and say a lot of things that many national leaders would disagree but deferred to him and would not be rude to him by telling him so in his face. And if you are not LKY, please do not behave and act as if you are LKY.

The Singapore today is not the Singapore of LKY. In his heyday, Singapore, or the Istana, is like a temple of wisdom for world leaders to pay homage and ask for blessings and a piece of good advice or wisdom from the Oracle.. Today who bothers to call on the Istana to have his fortune told? There is no need to go around antagonizing others when there is no need to. There is no need to commit our national interests to the interests of big power to offend anyone.

Singapore is not a Chinese country and it is right to remind China of this fact. But there is no need to apologise or feel a sense of guilt that Singapore is a Chinese majority country. Without the Chinese majority, what would Singapore have become today? Would Singapore be still in the ranks of the third world countries with no toilets and the people shitting in the open with slums everywhere? Singapore is a Chinese majority country and we have done well for all the races here. This is a heritage that we should be proud of. And Singapore would chart its own course for the benefits of the people of Singapore, with great sensitivities to the feelings and cultural backgrounds of its people without showing favour to any or discriminating against any. 

Our diplomats must know the sentiments of the Chinese majority and not shooting off ignoring their existence. The Chinese majority is not homogenous, there are the bananas, the anglophiles, there are also those that are rooted in their ancient civilization and culture. Are they anti China or pro America?  Most of the bananas are anti China, but there are those who do not think and share the values of the bananas. Any diplomat lashing out at China is not speaking for the Chinese majority or being sensitive to their sensibilities. Would offending some sections of the Chinese majority or offending China be good for our national interests?

Singapore may need the help of the Americans in the future and we should call the USA our friend, for the USA is the only trigger happy country that would have no qualms to pull the trigger on our behalf when called upon.  In this sense the USA is a very reliable protector. But we should also not be silly to think that the Americans would do this just for our own good. It is also for their own good, a symbiotic relationship. We need the Americans and the Americans need us just as badly for a safe and reliable foothold to support their Empire and world hegemony ambition and agenda.

While we need the Americans military muscle for our national security, we also need the Chinese economic power, the market, to spur our economic growth. In this sense we need China and its economy more than China needs us. The majority Chinese Singaporeans did not see China simply on cultural and racial familiarity but an avenue for our continued economic well being. Did we not send many many govt missions to China to carve out a little niche for ourselves and for our own economic growth? Did we not become one of the biggest investors in China? Did we not build Suzhou Industrial Park, Tianjin Eco Park and the many property projects in China? We are trying so hard to cling onto the Chinese economic bandwagon to share a bit of their growth.

Is there a need to slap the Chinese in front of the Japanese and the world, to embarrass them and to call them names? What is all that for? What are we trying to achieve by painting the Chinese as enemy and not to be trusted but hoping for crumbs left on the floor by them?

If slapping China and expecting China for hangouts is diplomacy then I would have to go back to school to relearn this new trick. Now I have a reason to spend my $500 in the Skills Future Fund. Is this the highest level of diplomacy red dot style? Has anyone heard of this new diplomatic doctrine, what Doctrine shall I called it, the Doctrine of the Little Red Dot?

Do not take China for granted, for a fool. And please do not take the USA as angels. Ask yourself a simple question, would China allow you to slap its cheek and turn the other cheek? And would the USA give you no strings attached military backing? Remember how the phrase ‘You are either with us or against us’ came about and how we ended up supporting a war that we should not be involved and compromising our national interests precariously?

Diplomacy is an art of the skillful statesmen but a bungling act for little boys and girls. Be reflective and know who we are and what we are. Learn from George Yeo, the former Foreign Minister. Don’t be ‘boh tua boh suay’. Know your rightful place in the international stage of realpolitiks. You don’t get away for taking cheap pot shots at the big powers or medium powers or even small powers.  Be contrite and be wise. A day of drunken glory would end up with a nasty hangover.

Kishore may be outspoken, but he is all diplomacy and even countries like China would seek his views on international matters in some way like a smaller oracle. A diplomat is a diplomat unlike a national leader. Can a diplomat be undiplomatic?

33 comments:

Anonymous said...


Hahaha........

Singapore not bad leh!

The US President Barack Obama will be hosting a STATE dinner for
our PM LHL at the White House on Aug 2!

Not bad! Not bad! Not bad!

Good!

Anonymous said...

"And if you are not LKY, please do not behave and act as if you are LKY."
RB

Tiok. Or else people will just simply ignore you, or worse think you are a IMH case.

Another name for this is megalomaniac. And this was actually what one Sinkie opposition leader called another. And the real one called him even worse, a "near psychopath". Hahahahahaha.

Anonymous said...

The US President Barack Obama will be hosting a STATE dinner for
our PM LHL at the White House on Aug 2!
8:56 am

But then Obama will only have 5 months left as President. Enough time for our PM LHL to do any followup matters with him?

Anonymous said...

Any joke this time?

Anonymous said...

Many moons ago, when a sinkie visited a chinese visit, the villagers will roll out red papers on the floor fo welcome the sinkie like he is tua pek kong.

Why?

Money can talk big mah.

Now, you visit their Chinese village, they will send their crickets to welcome you.

Why?

You want their money.

See how you progressed?

Anonymous said...


What A Very Interesting Coincidence!

I m no good with symbols on national flags.

I just realised that China flag has five stars.

And, of course, I know there are oso five stars on our Singapore flag.

The stars of both national flags I m sure have different representations.

But, still, what a very interesting coincidence!

Cheers.

Anonymous said...

Aiyah..go wherever there is money to be made. No money, Singapore will die. So...go out and learn how to suck balls. Hahahahaha

Veritas said...

Hindus got a twisted sense of history and worldview and they lie a lot. You can never trust them.

Take for example, in my days, we studied Aryan Invasion Theory (AIT) of India. Today, AIT was denied and white man help them. Aryan came from Eurasia plan and invade India, making Dalits. Then Hindus found this theory to be agitating for Dalits.

Now there is this crazy OIT, out of India theory. Meaning Aryan (white man) origianted from India and migrate to Europe.

Right now any media who dares to do a AIT will get sue to pants drop by Hindus and their white man NGO. The media relented and come out with a AMT (Aryan Migration THeory).

AIT denial discussion is extremely popular topic in internet.

Hindus are world biggest liar. THe world has hope under Islam. I am not too worry if entire world become Sunni. The world is a shit hole if everyone are Hindus.

HInduism and Indian culture deserve to go extinct and they already so in SE Asia.

Anonymous said...

Actually, the old man's legacy is Singlish( confused languages) hahahahhaha

Singlish is more a permanent heritage than your quality of life in HDBs hahahaha

Veritas said...

In what could be a major setback to Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu, an inter-continental research in cellular molecular biology has debunked the Aryan invasion theory.


“We have conclusively proved that there never existed any Aryans or Dravidians in the Indian sub continent. The Aryan-Dravidian classification was nothing but a misinformation campaign carried out by people with vested interests,” Prof Lalji Singh, vice-chancellor, Banaras Hindu University, told DNA.

“The study effectively puts to rest the argument that south Indians are Dravidians and were driven to the peninsula by Aryans who invaded North India,” said Prof Singh, a molecular biologist and former chief of Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad.

According to Prof Singh, Dr Chaubey, and Dr Kumarasamy Thangaraj, another member of the team, the findings disprove the caste theory prevailing in India. Interestingly, the team found that instead of Aryan invasion, it was Indians who moved from the subcontinent to Europe. “That’s the reason behind the findings of the same genetic traits in Eurasiain regions,” said Dr Thangaraj, senior scientist, CCMB.

Anonymous said...

Hinduism is the greatest philosophy with the greatest wisdom in the world.

Veritas does not seem to know that even the scientists experimenting and simulating the big bang theory at Cern realise the potency of Hinduism.

Anonymous said...

"Learn from George Yeo, the former Foreign Minister. Don’t be ‘boh tua boh suay’. Know your rightful place in the international stage of realpolitiks. You don’t get away for taking cheap pot shots at the big powers or medium powers or even small powers. Be contrite and be wise. A day of drunken glory would end up with a nasty hangover."

So ah neh should lead the way to suck chinese balls. Be contrite and wise and rub those balls well like rubbing a genie lantern or you shall be slapped by the chinese until got no face.

(ibest word it in singlish to enjoy the full flavour of what you are actually saying)

Anonymous said...

/// Can a diplomat be undiplomatic? ///

Can a political leader be rude and nasty to his voters by calling them daft and needing spurs into their sides?

What do you expect from diplomats who have been trained by the Grandmaster himself?

Anonymous said...

Which clown erected a sign board for him in Singapore?

Anonymous said...

Watever it is we r juz a liitle tiny red dot in this world..so wat can we do? ...punch above its own weight? ..got to be 'siow ah' or crazy right?..yes we need to be diplomatic & sometimes a bit more assertive to tell the bigger nations about our concerns else our sovereignty will be at stake & worse still it becomes a place of everybody but having no principles & survival instincts of its own...

Anonymous said...

/// Most of the bananas are anti China, but there are those who do not think and share the values of the bananas. ///
redbean

I object!
A banana is a pro-China Chinese who is anti any Chinese values and traditions that keep the Chinese people as a slave race.

And let's be honest.
A lot of traditional Chinese values and traditions keep the Chinese people as slaves.

George Yeo's "Boh Tuah Boh Suay" is a classic example.
If an old man cannot logically defend his policy.
And can only depend on "Boh Tuah Boh Suay" to win votes.

Then clearly the old man should be replaced.
And the dafties that went along with the "Boh Tuah Boh Suay" Chinese tradition deserve to continue to be slaves.

Anonymous said...

At the end of Orchard road got temple? The blind and stone heads might believe in it. Ordinary folks would go further down to Bras Basha where books store and holy spirits of India chinese western origins meditate in their respective status meters away. We cannot blame the ang mor like Hillary went into Istana. She as Secretary of State came out with asking China to follow a set of "code of conduct" which some old men spoke also in China.
The Istana holy spirit ta jalan. The "code of conduct" idea will be re test in Shan gila meeting on 3 June? No way. Ash Cater and commander Hari will be telling China deputy chief of army to kneel down and pay homage. Chinese render reverence to US is a world set rule.

But Sun with stars on shoulders now represent thousands of DF21 aiming at commander s carriers can never be obliged to US.
They have already drawn territorial map in S China Sea. Woody island and the Scarborough shoal, one near Vietnam, the US new partner, one near Philippines the US old partner all are china s territorial lands.

That is the setting in coming days for headlines. The little dot old ex diplomats have to talk something in order for the US old friends in NY to remember them. Offending the Chinese is not a joke so simple like "switch on the tap, they got pork soup". The Chinese tourists are not streaming into little dot for their over friendly remarks. Taiwan is facing the chronic shortage of chinese tourists.
Singapore GSS is waiting for them with great cut into the meat. But the chinese people are political animals. The have the money. Even Tomasek and CiC also cannot find place to put their money, but to buy alibaba. Dont fool with our pockets please. Want to be big time, apply for a green card and talk big big there. To represent singapore, talking down to china will make less in export.

Anonymous said...

Just encountered a shocking news: a 70 year old ex coffee shop cleaner burn himself to death at Geylang Lorong 10.

Geylang is a popular tourist spot for Chinese tourists to spend eating and drinking. A coffee shop retrenched a $1000pm cleaner. China tourists arrival should be alarmingly low.

No wander ordinary folks in US do not trust the words of elitist politicians. They vote for Trump and not Cruz who talked like priest according to reports. Do sinkies similarly trust the elites such as those think tanks? Hitting at a country where Singapore put most of their money in is part of the strategy of the elitist politicians? Ending up folks are not busy, even Geylang coffee shops.
Can people imagine how bad are the elite led economy? High pay for the talkers. These talkers cannot work out sensible ideas and deliver income to the lower levels such as old folks at 70 year old. Heard them still talking globalization? Immigrants create jobs for citizens?

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

OK banana, your objection sustain.

Mao Zedong shared the same concerns of yours and tried to eradicate all the old Chinese superstitions and backward beliefs during the cultural revolution.

Agreed many old and backward Chinese beliefs, superstitions and practices must be discarded. They are cancers to the Chinese Civilisation. Always discard the bad and adapt, borrow and learn from the best to progress. There are many good things to learn from the West but not the bad stuff.

Do not accept blindly all the old and bad practices.

Anonymous said...


wild boars are also becoming very "undiplomatic"

they should stay inside the green, but now any how run in punggol

anyway, where in this city state, one can eat wild boar meat

they are very very delicious especially with the special chilli sauce

remembered when young always ordered the "chwee bak" as they were very much cheaper

really 往事只能回味! 往事只能回味!

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

To eat wild boar got to go up north.

We human beans are invading their turf and chasing them out of their habitat.
Poor animals. Where are the animal lovers?

Quick do something to protect their sanctuary and their well being.

Anonymous said...

I am not sure what Indian are good at but look like they are good at especially IT and banking. Cause Microsoft, Adobe and Google are headed by them. Many banks like Citibank, chartered bank, dieucher bank, dibs bank and many more also used to be headed by them. In sinkie land all levels of IT and banks are headed by them. Even some Temasek units also headed by them like Fullerton fund. So u tell me lar they good or not?

Don't forget they also expert in sex and produced the karma sutra that the white people magazine on the Internet are absolutely swear to them like god's command.

Our CEC view is at least we acknowledge the kamasutra has been helpful in our riding experience.

Yew Kuang
Chairman
Kuda Riding Club
Singapore Chapter

Anonymous said...

Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations:

“Our merchants and master-manufacturers complain much of the bad effects of high wages in raising the price, and thereby lessening the sale of their goods both at home and abroad. They say nothing concerning the bad effects of high profits. They are silent with regard to the pernicious effects of their own gains. They complain only of those of other people.

But the rate of profit does not, like rent and wages, rise with the prosperity and fall with the declension of the society. On the contrary, it is naturally low in rich and high in poor countries, and it is always highest in the countries which are going fastest to ruin.”

Anonymous said...

Obama very boring, no people visit him in his last few months, so invite those SVIP and see who is desperate to lap on us

Anonymous said...

veritas very racial and rude, RB please omit

Anonymous said...

Singapore is not a Chinese country
____________________________________________________________________________
Why do Singapore always feel the need to draw the distinction between them and China?

Have you seen Canada, Australia feel the need to draw the distinction between them and UK or USA?

Have you seen Canada or Australia say that they are not Western nations? They are not puppet of USA or UK.

If Singapore take a pro China approach, why would the world see Singapore as " Puppet"? Is it because both nation are Chinese?

Nobody see Australia or Canada as Puppet for USA.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

Hi Anon 5:18, yes Veritas has very strong views. I have deleted many of his comments when he touched on Singapore and Malaysia's sensitivities.

When he skirted into international issues, it is a touch and go stuff.

Veritas, you reading. Please be more diplomatic and sensitive.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

Singapore is under the western influence and anything pro western is acceptable but pro China is unacceptable. Many bananas think this way, thinking that they are westerners by birth or origin, think, feel and view the world like westerners.

Anonymous said...

RB 10:35pm
There are many white men and women stay and live in China and Taiwan long term. They speak fluent chinese and hold "PR" of those places. eg FB one of its boss married a china woman and live in Beijing. Hard to say he is anti china. If those white are any china, they will not stay there.

Its exposure to chinese culture and the inferiority complex for not being able to understand square words to break into chinese culture that makes some having anti china inside them.

Almost all i knew in during NS who could not write or read chinese were anti "chinese". They were anti chinese singaporean who knew chinese and spoke mandarin. These people called latter "chinese helicopter". Thinking back, those were just having inferiority complex but turned into superiority complex when dealing with those who could speak chinese and english. I guess such generations are still plenty who only know english.

Anti china has only one way: go to the west. That this the way they develop their career. If not, they cannot enter china market to do anything. Google has R n D Center in Taiwan. If singaporeans cannot take chinese culture, too bad for their career as China will be getting even bigger than now in 15 years, the world largest market, bigger than US.

Veritas said...

Every single high profile western tech or fire industries boss by Hindus got bankrupt and go into scam.

Deutsche bank Anshu Jain is now the God of dynamite, and world biggest book cooker.

CIti Vikram Pandi was he champion derivative cooker in his time to be surpass by Anshu Jain today.

Mckinsey Rajat Gupta is a scammer.

SUN Vinod Kholsa lead his company into bankrupt.

QUalcomm infested by Indians from Intel Challenger now into shithole.

Adobe, Microsoft, Google is going bankrupt. We shall see.

Virgo 49 said...

Mr RB @ 10.35

Hello, Ahgongkia had been telling you bananas not to think that by adopting western names and cultures you are superior.

Do not let Ahgongkia hard work and breaths go to waste.

Just because you can speak with a slang and twang like the ang mos like with pricks stuck in their mouths, does not make you ang mos.

Your hair is not blond and your eyes not blue.

Can only dye your hair and put blue contacts to look the same.

But your aunties and uncles will still called you Ahgongkia ah!!!!

Many ang mos want to emulate the chinks and you want to boh lean chor follow their decadent lifestyles.

Wait until you wear hippy hippy or bagggy baggy torn pants with those fleas infested caps to Indonesia or penang and got barred with entry from the imiggrassi.

The teh tarik mama will curse you for paying ten sens less for the container.

See how the Aussies ex PM and the foreign dignitaries stood up in ovation when they hear A china lady compere Lan Ying speaks fluently between Mandarin and English with no prick in her mouth.

They were wondering why Asians speaks better Clearer Eng Kok than them and the silly bananas want to speak like them with pricks perpetually in their mouths.

Sigh, dont know what to say.

b said...

Singapore is a sad story. It is the only country getting independence without fighting for it. Singapore is so small that even with highest GDP per capita, foreigners will think that it is a tiny island with very strict law where everyone works non stop to pay for the gov lux lifestyle and the gov makes the people very poor by asking sky high prices for housing and cars. In other words, a place that consists of elites and serfs only and the people only hobby is to pay bills.

b said...

Diplomat or not they actually just share one religion- money.