At Davos, Singapore’s Tharman calls for US-China rivalry to ‘benefit’ world
The city state’s president also urges nations to stick to established rules and norms and build resilient international alliances
Speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, Tharman stressed that broad innovation benefits could come from rivalry between the two superpowers.
He added that innovations born of competition could lead to “mass flourishing” if the gains were shared widely. “They will compete furiously in new technologies, and for economic supremacy that will not be without benefit for the world.”
He added that both superpowers had to recognise that accommodation and flexible cooperation would serve the national interests of both parties.
Tharman warned against silent acceptance of diminishing norms and trust in multilateral institutions such as the United Nations, noting that the world was now a multipolar one.