Singapore leaders send condolence letters to wife of late former US diplomat Henry Kissinger - CNA

SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan have sent letters of condolences to Mrs Nancy Kissinger, wife of former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a press statement on Friday (Dec 1).

Dr Kissinger died at his home in Connecticut on Wednesday, according to a statement from his geopolitical consulting firm, Kissinger Associates Inc. 

It said he would be interred at a private family service, to be followed at a later date by a public memorial service in New York City.

In his letter to Mrs Kissinger on Thursday, Mr Lee said he and his wife, Mdm Ho Ching, were "deeply saddened" by the death of Dr Kissinger.

He said Dr Kissinger will be "remembered warmly" by many around the world.

"He was a peerless diplomat, true statesman, and visionary of his time," Mr Lee said. "As a leader, he served with conviction and pragmatism."

Mr Lee cited Dr Kissinger's involvement in US president Richard Nixon's rapprochement with China in 1972 as a "watershed moment" that led to an extended period of stable US-China relations. It resulted in steady global growth and deepening globalisation lasting decades, greatly benefitting the US and many other countries. 

He also said that from Singapore's perspective, another of Dr Kissinger's major accomplishments was the extraction of the US from the Vietnam War. 

"He felt deeply the need to protect US credibility and its global influence, and refused to simply abandon America’s South Vietnamese ally," said Mr Lee.

"Though he was bitterly criticised for his actions, his strategy bought the non-Communist countries of Southeast Asia precious time. We were able to build up our political, economic, and military strength, and to organise ourselves into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

"By the time South Vietnam fell in 1975, and the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia in 1978, the Asean members were much better able to deal with the security threats."

Mr Lee added that Dr Kissinger travelled to Singapore in March 2015 for the state funeral of his father, the late Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He also recalled the "moving eulogy" by Dr Kissinger at a private memorial service for the late Mr Lee in New York later that year.

Mr Lee also said he had the privilege of knowing Dr Kissinger personally and benefitted greatly from his "counsel, wisdom, and curiosity about the world".

He added that he last met Dr Kissinger during a visit to New York in April 2022, and they spoke for more than an hour. 

"Dr Kissinger touched many hearts throughout his long life. His legacy will remain with us for a long time to come," said Mr Lee.

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2023-12-01 05:53:30Z
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Dozens killed as war resumes in Gaza after truce collapses - The Straits Times

The other two newly released hostages were a brother and sister, Mr Belal and Ms Aisha al-Ziadna, aged 18 and 17 respectively, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office. They are Bedouin Arab citizens of Israel and among four members of their family taken hostage while they were milking cows on a farm.

One of Qatar’s lead negotiators, career diplomat Abdullah Al Sulaiti, who helped broker the truce through marathon shuttle negotiations, acknowledged in a recent Reuters interview the uncertain odds of keeping the guns silent.

“At the beginning, I thought achieving an agreement would be the most difficult step,” he said in an article that detailed the behind-the-scenes efforts for the first time.

“I’ve discovered that sustaining the agreement itself is equally challenging.”

The truce had allowed more fuel and 56 trucks of humanitarian supplies to enter Gaza on Nov 30, Israel’s Defence Ministry and the Palestinian Red Crescent Society said.

But deliveries of food, water, medical supplies and fuel remain far below what is needed, aid workers say.

At an emergency meeting in Amman, Jordan’s King Abdullah on Nov 30 urged UN officials and international groups to pressure Israel to allow more aid into the beleaguered enclave, according to delegates.

When the ceasefire first came into effect a week ago, Israel was preparing to turn the focus of its operation to southern Gaza after its seven-week assault to the north.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who met Israeli and Palestinian officials on Nov 30 on his third trip to the region since the war began, declined to comment on the collapse of the truce to reporters travelling on his plane.

The day before, Mr Blinken called on Israel to do more to protect civilians once fighting resumes. He praised the truce and said Washington hoped it would be extended.

“We discussed the details of Israel’s ongoing planning and I underscored the imperative for the United States that the massive loss of civilian life and displacement of the scale that we saw in northern Gaza not be repeated in the south,” he told reporters in Tel Aviv, adding the Israeli government had agreed. REUTERS

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2023-12-01 10:45:11Z
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Malaysia brings home 121 suspected victims of job scams trapped in Myanmar conflict - CNA

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 121 people, mostly Malaysians suspected of being victims of job scams, were evacuated from Myanmar on Friday (Dec 1) after being stranded by fighting between the military and rebel groups in the country's north, Malaysia's foreign ministry said.

The group, which included an Indonesian national, arrived at Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 3.24am local time through a specially arranged flight from Kunming, China, the ministry said in a statement.

The evacuation mission was carried out through the Myanmar-China border starting on Thursday morning with the cooperation and approval of the countries involved, the ministry said.

The mission came amid continuous fighting in northern Myanmar after an alliance of armed ethnic groups launched an offensive in late October. The groups have seized control of several towns and military outposts near the country's border with China, disrupting trade.

Malaysia's deputy foreign minister Mohamad Alamin said the rescued group were among 128 people stranded in Laukkaing, a town in Myanmar's northern Shan state, state news agency Bernama reported on Friday.

Malaysia's government will monitor developments and is ready to evacuate the remaining seven people who were unable to be rescued, Bernama quoted Mohamad as saying.

Hundreds of Malaysians have been rescued from cybercrime and job scam networks across Southeast Asia in recent years. Victims of the rackets say they are lured by promises of high-paying jobs and accommodation benefits, but are often instead forced to live in compounds and defraud online users.

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2023-12-01 04:55:24Z
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Hamas frees eight hostages to Israel as talks seek to extend Gaza truce - CNA

GAZA: Hamas on Thursday (Nov 30) released eight Israeli hostages in Gaza under a last-minute truce deal and and Israel freed 30 Palestinian prisoners as negotiators sought to renew the pause in fighting again.

Israel identified two women who were released first on Thursday as 21-year-old Mia Schem, among those seized at a dance party that Hamas militants attacked on Oct 7, and 40-year-old Amit Soussana.

Photos released by the Israeli prime minister's office showed Schem, who also holds French nationality, embracing her mother and brother after they were reunited at Hatzerim military base in Israel.

The Palestinian militant group Hamas then freed a group of six more hostages, transferring them to the Red Cross, the Israeli military said. Four were women aged 29 to 41, including one Mexican-Israeli dual national, according to official information.

Television images showed some of the women walking past ambulances once they reached Israeli territory.

The other two newly released hostages were a brother and sister, Belal and Aisha al-Ziadna, aged 18 and 17 respectively, according to the Israeli prime minister's office. They are Bedouin Arab citizens of Israel and among four members of their family taken hostage while they were milking cows on a farm.

Wahid Alhuzail, who chairs a group for Bedouins kidnapped on Oct 7, said he was happy they were freed.

"But it's not completely fulfilling. We want everyone to come home and for nobody to be stuck in the hands of the terror organisation Hamas," he told Reuters.

As part of the agreement, 30 Palestinians were released from jails, the Israeli prison service said.

Israel has sworn to annihilate Hamas, which rules Gaza, in response to the Oct 7 rampage by the militant group, when Israel says gunmen killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages.

Until the truce, Israel bombarded the territory for seven weeks. Palestinian health authorities deemed reliable by the United Nations say more than 15,000 Gazans have been confirmed killed.

While Israel required Hamas to release 10 hostages daily to continue the Qatari-mediated truce, a Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said there would be no more hostages freed on Thursday beyond the eight.

Israeli officials accepted eight rather than 10 hostages because Hamas on Wednesday released two extra hostages, the Qatari spokesperson said. They were Israeli-Russian women whose liberty the Palestinian faction described as a goodwill gesture to Moscow.

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2023-11-30 21:10:00Z
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'Climate doesn't wait': At COP28, Singapore wants to get more nations back on track with reducing emissions - CNA

The minister pointed out that by 2050 – the deadline crucial to meet the 1.5-degree limit – these youths will be the generation leading the country.

“They will be in their late 40s and 50s – prime of their lives. They will probably be business leaders, industry leaders, or even policymakers. And if they're going to be in the stewardship position, they should really get involved right now and to help steer this mothership of ours,” she said.

“We want to make sure that when they are making certain decisions, the trade-offs they are proposing, that they have a full picture of the constraints, of the needs of the people, industry and government.”

The summit also allows the youths to meet like-minded peers from across the globe and share opinions and aspirations.

“Climate is a global problem. For us to have a global solution, we need to be inclusive,” said Ms Fu. “Our youths need to take into consideration the views of other youth activists from other countries.”

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2023-11-30 11:12:07Z
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China too 'overwhelmed' to consider invasion: Taiwan President Tsai - CNA

TAIPEI: China's leadership is too "overwhelmed" with its internal problems to consider an invasion of Taiwan, President Tsai Ing-wen said in an interview with the New York Times.

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up military pressure against the island over the past four years, leading to concerns of a conflict that would have global repercussions.

But Tsai, in a transcript of the New York Times DealBook Summit interview her office published on Thursday (Nov 30), said China had too many issues at the moment.

"Well, I think the Chinese leadership at this juncture is overwhelmed by its internal challenges. And my thought is that perhaps this is not a time for them to consider a major invasion of Taiwan," she said.

"Largely because the internal economic and financial as well as political challenges, but also, the international community has made it loud and clear that war is not an option, and peace and stability serves everybody's interests."

Asked about Tsai's comments, China's defence ministry said: "China will eventually and surely be reunified".

"The People's Liberation Army will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity," ministry spokesperson Wu Qian told a monthly news briefing in Beijing.

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2023-11-30 08:43:00Z
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Great statesman, modern Machiavelli: Henry Kissinger's complex and conflicted legacy - The Straits Times

WASHINGTON - Dr Henry Kissinger, the much-feted practitioner of unsentimental realpolitik who died in his home in Connecticut on Nov 29 at age 100, was different things to different people. To some, he was one of the great statesmen of the 20th century; to others, a modern Machiavelli; to admirers, an unsentimental realist; but to detractors, a war criminal.

Though his influence was greatest during the Cold War years of the 1970s, we live today in a world he helped to create, and to which he left a complex, deeply contradictory and conflicted legacy.

Henry Alfred Kissinger was born in 1923 in Furth, Germany, to middle-class parents. In 1938, the family fled their native country’s discrimination and anti-Semitism to settle in New York City.

He would rise in his adopted country to become National Security Adviser, Secretary of State, and thereafter eminence grise to a series of American presidents.

Shortly after the young Kissinger became a naturalised citizen, he was drafted into the United States Army and served as an intelligence officer in Europe in the war. On his return, he embarked on a distinguished academic career, receiving a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in 1950, then his master’s degree in 1952 and PhD in 1954 from the same university.

Dr Kissinger was appointed by President Richard Nixon to be his National Security Adviser in 1968, a post he held until 1975. In addition, he was also the 56th Secretary of State of the US from 1973 to 1977. After he left the government, he founded Kissinger Associates, an international consulting firm.

To say Dr Kissinger loomed large over the world through the 1970s in particular would be an understatement.

Impact on Asia

In 1971, Dr Kissinger and President Nixon sent the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal, ostensibly to help evacuate Western nationals from the war zone in the third Indo-Pakistan war. But really, it was a show of force to dissuade India’s Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from moving against West Pakistan.

The Indian army was already deep inside East Pakistan, liberating it from the genocide of the Pakistani army, which was crushing a Bengali nationalist movement in the eastern half of the country. Deaths in the conflict are estimated to have been upwards of 1.5 million; up to 10 million refugees fled to neighbouring India, with the city of Calcutta – now Kolkata – awash with emaciated refugees. The events were increasing pressure on Mrs Gandhi to act.

The US, however, backed West Pakistan. Mrs Gandhi turned to the Soviet Union to checkmate President Nixon with her August 1971 Friendship Treaty with Moscow, infuriating the duo in the White House.

But the US had its own reasons for its actions. Pakistan’s military dictator Yahya Khan was orchestrating Dr Kissinger’s historic 1971 trip to China – a trip that was to lay the ground for President Nixon’s visit to China in 1972. The US had had no diplomatic relations with China for more than two decades.

The US support for then West Pakistan during the war located in what became Bangladesh today is too often forgotten, except of course in Bangladesh.

“Nixon and Kissinger largely failed at sanitising their record on... Vietnam and Cambodia – but on Bangladesh, they proved to be remarkably deft at ducking public judgment,” wrote professor of politics and international affairs Gary J. Bass at Princeton University, in his 2013 book, The Blood Telegram.

Just two years later, when Dr Kissinger became Secretary of State, a Gallup poll found him to be the most admired man in America.

“Far from ending up a pariah, he remains a superstar, glistening as the single most famous and revered American foreign policy practitioner,” Prof Bass wrote.

Dr Kissinger is still held as the guru of Washington’s foreign policy and national security establishment for the way he engineered a Sino-Soviet split, bringing China, under its pragmatic leaders Zhou Enlai and Deng Xiaoping, into the international community. It paved the way for the US’ eventual recognition on Jan 1, 1979, of the People’s Republic as the sole legitimate government of China.

Former top Singapore diplomat Kishore Mahbubani, currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Research Institute of the National University of Singapore, has argued that the trip planted seeds which, with the help of personal relationships, ensured that the relationship between China and the US endured crises. The development was good for the region because as long as the US and China sustained a relatively harmonious relationship, Asean was not divided by their rivalry.

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2023-11-30 02:30:00Z
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