Xi-Biden summit: upbeat tone not enough to ease Southeast Asia’s concerns about great power squeeze
- Many countries in the region are concerned about being forced to pick sides as the great power rivalry continues
- A day after the virtual meeting, Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned that Taiwan remained a potential flashpoint
Meanwhile, Biden “underscored that the United States will continue to stand up for its interests and values and, together with our allies and partners, ensure the rules of the road for the 21st century advance an international system that is free, open, and fair,” according to the White House.
“We should be concerned,” Lee told the New Economy Forum organised by Bloomberg Media Group. “I don’t think it’s going to war overnight, but it is in a situation where you can have a mishap or a miscalculation and be in a very delicate situation.”
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Xi Jinping and Joe Biden call for mutual respect and peaceful China-US coexistence
“All these moves raise suspicions and tensions and anxieties and make it more likely that a mishap or miscalculation can happen,” he continued. “Everybody says the right thing, but if you look at what is happening it is not a static situation.”