Little Red Dot, The: Reflections By Singapore's Diplomats

Reflections by Singapore's DiplomatsVolume I

Tommy Koh, Li Lin Chang

• Publisher: WSPC
• Year: 2005
• eBook ISBN: 9789814479783
• Topic: Ciencias biológicas
• Subtopic: Ciencias en general

2005 was the 40th anniversary of Singapore's independence. This collection of essays by Singapore's past and present diplomats tells the remarkable story of how this small and vulnerable country has become a stable, prosperous and respected member of the international community. The essays include those from the late President Wee Kim Wee and President S R Nathan as well as seminal contributions from the four former Foreign Ministers — Mr S Rajaratnam, Mr S Dhanabalan, Mr Wong Kan Seng and Professor S Jayakumar. The current Foreign Minister, Mr George Yeo, has written the foreword. The absorbing stories about people, places and international politics make this book a highly enjoyable read for all who are interested in Singapore, its history, and foreign policy.

In the stories contained in this book you will find and discover:

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• which other Q (quotient), besides IQ (intellectual quotient) and EQ (emotional quotient), a successful diplomat needs
• how our diplomats helped to look after and evacuate Singaporeans in dangerous situations
• how our diplomats have been able to overcome the size of our country and punch above our weight
• why the burial of a buffalo head, with our diplomats acting as gravediggers, was of paramount significance to our embassy in Indonesia
• about the 24/7 schedules that our foreign service desk officers keep, sleeping with handphones in their pyjamas
• the advantage of being a lady Ambassador in a man's world
• the power of ideas and friends in diplomacy

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This book is also available as a set with The Little Red Dot, Volume II.

Sample Chapter(s)
Eight Lessons on Negotiations (148k)

Contents:

• The Presidents
• Ministers
• Permanent Secretaries
• Madam Ambassadors
• First Generation Diplomats
• The Second Generation
• Non-Resident Ambassadors

Readership: General readers interested in Singapore, its history, and foreign policy. Singapore;Diplomacy Key Features:

• The first ever collection of essays by former and current Singapore diplomats spanning the first 40 years of Singapore's independence.
• Lessons about the art and science of diplomacy
• A comprehensive Annex of the Milestones in Singapore's External Relations

THE LITTLE

RED D•T

Reflections by Singapore’s Diplomats

Editors

Tommy Koh

Chang Li Lin

Published by

World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.

5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224

USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601

UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

THE LITTLE DOT: REFLECTIONS BY SINGAPORE’S DIPLOMATS

Copyright © 2005 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.

All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without written permission from the Publisher.

For photocopying of material in this volume, please pay a copying fee through the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. In this case permission to photocopy is not required from the publisher.

ISBN 981-256-414-4 (pbk)

Printed in Singapore.

To S. Rajaratnam
Singapore’s first Foreign Minister 1965 to 1980

Contents

Foreword

by George Yeo, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Singapore

Acknowledgements

List of Abbreviations

Introduction

Part 1 The Presidents

1.1Making Friends by Wee Kim Wee

1.2My Foreign Ministry Years by S. R. Nathan

Part 2 Ministers

2.1Principles of Singapore’s Foreign Policy by S. Rajaratnam

2.2Scenes from the Cambodian Drama by S. Dhanabalan

2.3Continuity and Change in Singapore’s Foreign Policy by Wong Kan Seng

2.4Singapore’s First Lobbying Effort in the U.N. General Assembly by S. Jayakumar

2.5Solving Two Diplomatic Challenges by Lee Khoon Choy

Part 3 Permanent Secretaries

3.1A Pioneer in the Service by Chia Cheong Fook

3.2Singapore in the United Nations Security Council by Kishore Mahbubani

3.3Fate and Circumstance by Tan Chin Tiong

3.4Some Fundamentals of Singapore’s Foreign Policy by Bilahari Kausikan

Part 4 Madam Ambassadors

4.1Friends and Ideas in Diplomacy by Chan Heng Chee

4.2An Accidental Diplomat by Jaya Mohideen

4.3I Wish I Had a Wife by Mary Seet-Cheng

Part 5 First Generation Diplomats

5.1“Sent to Lie Abroad for My Country” by Mushahid Ali

5.2Impressions of Diplomatic Life by Maurice Baker

5.3A Jonah in Diplomacy by Harry Chan Keng Howe

5.4The Human Side of Diplomacy by Chew Tai Soo

5.5Representing Singapore in the Early Years by Chiang Hai Ding

5.6A Soldier in Diplomacy by Winston Choo

5.7Life in the Former USSR by Joseph Conceicao

5.8An Ambassador in Transition — A Taste of French Diplomacy by Foo Meng Tong

5.9The Politics of Trade: Singapore and the World Trade Organisation by K. Kesavapany

5.10Eight Lessons on Negotiations by Tommy Koh

5.11Reflections in Bits and Pieces by Lee Chiong Giam

5.12Being An Ambassador the SIA Way by Lim Chin Beng

5.13Reflections of 33 years in Diplomacy by Low Choon Ming

5.14Speaking Up for Singapore by Verghese Mathews

5.15From Academia to Diplomacy and Back by Pang Eng Fong

5.16A Sojourn in Diplomacy by J. Y. Y Pillay

5.17Starting from Scratch by V. K. Rajan

5.18The Importance of Friendships in Diplomacy by Ridzwan Dzafir

5.19The Early Years by See Chak Mun

5.20Culture of an Inclusive Organisation by Kemal Tony Siddique

5.21The Importance of Protocol in Diplomacy by Tan Keng Jin

Part 6 The Second Generation

6.1Undiplomatic Wanderings through Indonesia by Barry Desker

6.2An Enriching Learning Experience in Thailand by Calvin Eu

6.3Personal Relations and Diplomacy by Jacky Foo

6.4Learning from Others by Mark Hong

6.5Learning Lessons by T. Jasudasen

6.6Four Days in May by Edward Lee

6.7MFA in the 1970s by Lin Chung Ying

6.8The Other Legends by Ong Keng Yong

6.9Championing Singapore by Raymond Wong

6.10Language, Culture and History as Tools of the Trade by Walter Woon

Part 7 Non-Resident Ambassadors

7.1Breaking Protocol by Chua Yong Hai

7.2Men and Women of Our Foreign Service — A Dedication by Philip Eng

7.3Diplomacy, Singapore Style by Brian Lee

7.4From Business to Diplomacy by Victor Loh

7.5Drinking the Wine of Kings, Having a King for a Friend by Ng Ser Miang

7.6Ruminations of a Non-Resident Ambassador by Pang Cheng Lian

7.7A Businessman in Diplomacy by Gopinath Pillai

7.8Building Goodwill, Charting New Course by Tan Kah Hoe

Annex I:Milestones of Singapore’s External Relations from August 1965-May 2005

Annex II:List of Countries with which Singapore has Diplomatic Relations

Index

Foreword

Kissinger has described Singapore leaders more than once as being “cold-blooded” in their analysis of the global environment. We have to be. Having to scratch out an existence within rather tight margins, we cannot afford to be subjective or sentimental in our worldview.

From the moment of our independence, we have had to do two things: first, making a living with what little we have; and, second, protecting an island city-state with zero strategic depth. It is therefore not surprising that the mission of the Foreign Ministry has been completely focused on creating and securing our external political and economic space.

That clarity of mission has created a strong tradition in the Foreign Service. Because there is always too much to do and never enough resources, we have to concentrate on the most important issues at hand. In the early years of independence, it was to establish good relations with our neighbours on the basis of mutual benefit and mutual respect, and strong links with the U.S., Europe and Japan, which ensured our security and provided our investments. When South Vietnam fell to the North in 1975, and particularly after Vietnamese army divisions crossed the Mekong in 1978, we worked feverishly to strengthen ASEAN. With our ASEAN partners and other friends, we were determined to prevent the absorption of Cambodia into the Soviet camp. After the end of the Cold War, the landscape saw a sea change. As China and India re-emerged as economic powers, we had to adjust our position to capture new opportunities. The integration of all of South-east Asia became a key task. The Asian financial crisis came as a rude shock. It was followed by SARS and the tsunami. But with each challenge, ASEAN grew stronger. And, with globalisation, we entered an era of FTAs.

The fundamentals however remain unchanged. We have still to make a living but this time in the global knowledge economy. We have still to secure the external environment but this time in a world where the major powers are no longer at each other’s throats. Instead, they have become economically interdependent and cooperate to fight global terrorism. Economics is now a large part of foreign policy.

Roughly speaking, three generations of able men and women in the Foreign Service have served their country in the last 40 years. Although we do not have many foreign missions, and all are modestly staffed, we have been able to fly high the Singapore flag. Ours is a well-regarded Foreign Service with a strong esprit de corps. I was honoured to be a deputy Foreign Minister from 1988 to 1994. To me, it was like joining Camelot. There were many brave knights, some with personalities sharply etched. I was delighted to return to the Ministry last year — sad to find out that some had retired but glad that many more have joined its ranks.

This book is a collection of their stories.

George Yeo
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Singapore
May 2005

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank President S. R. Nathan for inspiring us to co-edit this book. The President has been very enthusiastic about the book. He saw us on several occasions and gave us good advice. He was also the first person to send in his essay.

We would also like to express our appreciation to our Deputy Prime Mini...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Volume I