US, China must find way forward to tackle differences: DPM Heng

The first face-to-face US-China meeting under the Biden administration is a step in the right direction despite the tough rhetoric, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday.

He said the meeting showed a recognition from both sides on the need for dialogue and cooperation.

"It is important that they persevere - maintain open channels of communication, find a way forward to deal with their differences, and manage the tensions and frictions," said Mr Heng.

He was giving the keynote address at the virtual Credit Suisse Asian Investment Conference, days after top Chinese and US diplomats publicly rebuked each other's policies at talks in Alaska.

In his speech, Mr Heng said the global order is going through choppier seas, and while Asia's prospects are promising, with a young population and fast-growing middle class, its growth is not fore-ordained. Whether it can emerge stronger post-Covid will depend on how it navigates shifting geopolitical tides and seizes economic opportunities.

A fracture in US-China ties would be hugely destabilising, he noted, stressing that a stable relationship is important to the global commons.

While the Biden administration will bring a more predictable approach to the world's most critical bilateral relationship, the United States and China will continue to be strategic competitors, he said.

But it is in the interest of both sides to cooperate on common challenges such as Covid-19 and climate change, he added.

"I am glad that both sides have acknowledged that there are areas that they could work together on despite the competitive tenor of their relationship."

Mr Heng said he hoped a framework for cooperation will be developed, even as both sides continue to compete, as major powers do. "Fair, healthy competition can be positive, if it spurs innovation to achieve better solutions for the many complex challenges that the world faces," he added.

He also said it is critical that both countries remain constructively engaged with the region. The US presence has provided much needed stability since World War II, and its investments have been instrumental to the region's rapid growth.

Welcoming the Biden administration's commitment to continue to engage and strengthen its partnership with the region, he said Asean is an important partner for the US, not just in tackling existing and emerging global challenges, but also in putting regional engagement efforts into concrete action.

At the same time, China's economic success has been a boon for growth in the region, he said, noting that the Asean-China Dialogue Partnership, which commemorates its 30th anniversary this year, is one of Asean's most substantive external partnerships.

"The constructive involvement of both the US and China in the region will be key to Asia's continued peace, stability and growth."

Mr Heng said South-east Asia must continue to work with all parties. Underlining the importance of Asean centrality, he said the region must work as one Asean to advance its collective interest. "It is not a question of choosing sides, but of retaining our ability to make choices for ourselves," he added.

"Should US-China tensions escalate, our region must firmly remain anchored on Asean's own interest, and to keep ourselves open and relevant through practical steps," he said. "This will enable us to emerge stronger from this crisis."

He noted that other than the US and China, the leaders of the Quad - US, Japan, India and Australia - recently reaffirmed their strong support for Asean centrality too.

Mr Heng also said there are many opportunities in Asean, which has to remain an open and inclusive investment destination, and Singapore can be investors' partner in the region.