China sees itself moving in Singapore's direction: MM Lee

Channel NewsAsia 17 Nov 07

BEIJING: China is now moving quickly to adapt to a fast changing world, and its new generation of leaders are determined to sustain the nation's growth for a long time, said Singapore's Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew during his 27th visit to China.

Speaking to the Singapore media at the conclusion of his official visit, Mr Lee noted that the Chinese are studying Singapore very seriously - including how its civil servants are trained and how the members of Parliament conduct Meet The People sessions.

Through these efforts, he said, the Chinese are adapting and adopting fast because they see themselves moving in Singapore's direction.

After a one-hour meeting with Xi Jinping, who was appointed to the Politburo Standing Committee, Mr Lee found the new leader a thoughtful man who has been through many trials and tribulation.

"I would put him in the Nelson Mandela's class of persons. A person with enormous emotional stability who does not allow his personal misfortunes or sufferings affect his judgement. In other words, he is impressive," he said.

The minister mentor said he has extended an invitation on behalf of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for Mr Xi to visit Singapore.

Senior Chinese leaders told Mr Lee that bilateral relations are now poised to move to the next level.

A proposed eco-city project is also expected to be finalised when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visits Singapore.

Chinese President Hu Jintao told the minister mentor that the project will be a timely collaboration as the world is turning their attention to the environment.

Noting Mr Lee's efforts and devotion in building bilateral ties, which started even before formal relations were established 17 years ago, Mr Hu said both countries should promote the relationship to new heights.

Sharing the same sentiments, Chinese State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan told Mr Lee that bilateral ties have entered a track of rapid, steady and mature development, and both sides should make use of complementary advantages to promote and deepen cooperation.

Sharing his observation of the different generations of Chinese leaders, Mr Lee noted a steady development in the leadership renewal process.

"I would say that they are beginning to regularise and institutionalise the way leaders are selected or voted into office by the elite at the top, the top crowders. So I expect at the next People's Congress, there will be more consultation, more expression of views, drawing of opinions, and then a final selection with a vote of the key person(s) involved, which created a much more stable position," he said.

"The senior leaders are prepared to step aside for younger leaders to come forward, so that there's a steady stream of able, committed people who will take on the leadership mantel in the years ahead," Minister for Defence Teo Chee Hean said of the Chinese leaders.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Lim Swee Say added that the Chinese leaders are prepared to go above and beyond to realise their long term goals, even if it means treading in uncharted waters.

On China-US relations, Mr Lee said that the biggest problem between the two countries is Taiwan, and the challenge is for the US to make sure that nothing foolish happens before the Taiwan elections in March, or there could be an unpredictable outcome. - CNA/ac

Beijing studying S'pore ways to adopt and adapt
Straits Times 18 Nov 07

MENTION Singapore-China collaboration and the first thought that comes to mind will be mega projects such as the Suzhou Industrial Park or the soon-to-be-built 'eco-city'.

But the full extent of the cooperation between the two countries stretches across a much wider field than these headline-grabbing projects, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew told the Singapore media on Friday night after wrapping up his meetings with top Chinese leaders in Beijing.

For instance, Singapore has shared with China its experience in running the foreign and civil service.

Beijing has also been keen on learning more about what Singapore is doing at the grassroots level, such as the operation of the People's Association (PA) and how Meet-the-People sessions are conducted.

'(Chinese State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan) said when he was the foreign minister, he saw what we were doing, and he sent his best, most promising foreign service officers to go there and study us so that they can do the same,' MM Lee said.

He added: 'They are studying us very seriously because they have to adopt and adapt to suit their circumstances, because they can see themselves moving in that same direction as they have more and more opening-up.

'So (bilateral collaboration) is across the board.'

And when they met MM Lee on Thursday and Friday, Chinese leaders, including President Hu Jintao, said they hoped to take already close bilateral cooperation to even greater heights.

The joint eco-city project, which aims to showcase how China can balance rapid economic growth with environmental protection, is the perfect vehicle to do just that, according to leaders from both countries.

Said MM Lee: 'As President Hu said, this fits in with the theme of their recent 17th Party Congress, which is comprehensive, balanced and sustainable development.'

On a personal level, Singaporean leaders have also been actively engaging their Chinese counterparts, both the incumbent and newly selected ones.

Three younger Singaporean leaders - Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Lim Swee Say, and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education Masagos Zulkifli - accompanied MM Lee on this trip, where he met China's most prominent political rising star, Mr Xi Jinping, 54.

When they met at the Great Hall of the People on Friday afternoon, Mr Lee invited Mr Xi to visit Singapore soon.

'I'll be writing to Xi Jinping, inviting him to Singapore and saying that there are a list of things in his new job as the central party secretariat that he'll be interested in knowing how we do things, and maybe he can find them useful,' said MM Lee.

S'pore-China ties set to soar with Eco-City Framework Agreement
By Wong Siew Ying, Channel NewsAsia
18 November 2007

SINGAPORE: Singapore and China have signed the highly anticipated Eco-City Framework Agreement.

The deal will see a new environmentally friendly development built in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

It is the most significant collaboration between Singapore and China since the Suzhou Industrial Park.

With the new eco-city, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the two countries are set to deepen cooperation and bring bilateral ties to even greater heights.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived in Singapore on Sunday afternoon – his first official visit here as premier – and was received by PM Lee at the airport.

After a ceremonial welcome, both leaders got straight to work.

They signed the Eco-City Framework Agreement which will kick-start the development of the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Project.

The vision is for the area to become a model for sustainable development – one which is socially harmonious, environmentally friendly and resource-efficient.

The leaders also hope to take the relationship to the next level.

Mr Wen said: "In conducting cooperation, we must be result-oriented and innovative. Today we signed the agreement on the development of an eco-city in China. This is yet another cooperation effort by China and Singapore after the Suzhou Industrial Park.

"The Suzhou Industrial Park has become a crystallisation of the friendship between our two countries. And with the eco-city to be built in Tianjin, it will become another highlight in our relations."

Mr Lee said: "Our relations are good because the foundations of the relations are based on compatible strategic views of the way Asia is developing, of China's development, and peaceful emergence into the world order. Therefore, we believe that there's room for us to work together for mutual benefit and on the basis of equality and mutual respect."

A supplementary agreement was also signed between National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan and Chinese Construction Minister Wang Guangtao to guide the implementation details of the Eco-City Project, which will be led by Keppel Corporation.

Mr Lee said the new project will not be just another commercial venture, but one that reflects Singapore's commitment to share with China its developmental experience.

The leaders also launched the Singapore-China Foundation (SCF), which provides scholarship and exchange programmes for government officials.

Earlier, the leaders met for about an hour to discuss wide-ranging issues that include the Singapore-China Free Trade Agreement and Myanmar.

Premier Wen said China supports UN efforts to broker peace in Myanmar and hope the process of reconciliation can be restored.

In the days ahead, the Chinese premier will give a lecture at the National University of Singapore and attend the East Asia Summit.

China-S'pore eco-city ready in 10-15 years' time
Located in Tianjin, it will be developed by joint consortium
By Clarissa Oon, Straits Times 19 Nov 07;

THE northern Chinese port city of Tianjin may one day be known not just as an industrial utopia but an environmentally friendly one as well.

The proposed Sino- Singapore Tianjin Eco- city will be located on a 30 sq km site within the booming Tianjin Binhai New Area economic zone, just 150km from Beijing, Singapore sources close to the project told The Straits Times.

When completed in 10 to 15 years' time, the eco-city's 200,000 to 300,000 residents are expected to live and work in resource-efficient 'green' buildings, while fully plugged in to manufacturing, shipping, R&D and logistics activities of this northern Chinese hub.

The selection of Tianjin as the eco-city's location was officially announced last night at the Istana, where Singapore Prime Minister Lee

Hsien Loong and visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao signed an agreement for both governments to jointly develop the eco-city.

The agreement lays out the aims and supervision mechanism for the project, which will be driven by a bilateral joint steering committee led by Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng and Chinese Vice-Premier Wu Yi.

The eco-city itself will be developed by a consortium of companies on both sides. The key company on the Singapore side is Keppel Corporation.

'This is a project which we have been discussing with the Chinese side for several months. Both sides have put in a lot of effort to decide how it should proceed and where the project should be located,' Mr Lee told the media after the signing.

'We have decided it is Tianjin and we are very happy with the decision,' he added.

Mr Wen called the eco-city 'another highlight in our bilateral relations' following the joint development of Suzhou Industrial Park 13 years ago. The 70 sq km industrial zone is located in Suzhou in south-eastern Jiangsu province.

Neither leader gave reasons why Tianjin was chosen as the site of the eco-city project, which was first mooted to Mr Wen by Singapore's Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong in April.

However, a Singapore source close to the project said Tianjin was picked over three other locations because it has the best economic infrastructure and transport connections.

The other three locations being considered were Caofeidian, a port city near Tangshan in northern Hebei province, Baotou city in northern Inner Mongolia, and Urumqi, the capital of western Xinjiang autonomous region.

'Both the Caofeidian and Tianjin sites have potential. The key thing is which site can take off faster, because we want the eco-city to be something other Chinese cities can duplicate,' said the source.

He revealed that the Caofeidian site was relatively far from the city centre of Tangshan, compared to the Tianjin site, which is near the heart of the Binhai New Area and its international cargo airport and sea port.

The initial phase of the Tianjin eco-city, an area of about 3 to 5 sq km, is expected to be completed within five years, said a Singapore government source.

The full 30 sq km site is expected to be ready in 10 to 15 years, he said.