
Speaking at the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2026 in Singapore, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan warned that the global landscape would remain unsettled if the United States and China fail to address their domestic issues, emphasizing Singapore's need to maintain trust with both superpowers without serving as a proxy for either amid their difficult relationship.
AI-generated summary
The United States and China are experiencing strained relations, which has created challenges for smaller states like Singapore that seek to maintain balanced relations with both powers.
He also warned that the global landscape would remain unsettled if China and the United States failed to address their respective domestic issues.
Speaking at the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2026 in Singapore on Wednesday, Balakrishnan identified maintaining trust with both Washington and Beijing – whose relationship was in a "difficult phase" – as a key challenge.
The city state had to assure both superpowers that it would remain useful without serving as a proxy for either, he said.

A missile attack on Kyiv killed two people on Wednesday, according to the mayor, following President Zelensky's warning of massive Russian strikes targeting the city. Residents sought shelter in subway stations with bedding and supplies after military alerts were issued for Kyiv and other regions.

Israel commemorated the third anniversary of Hamas' October 7 attack with silent tributes at sites like the Nova music festival and Kfar Aza kibbutz, while conducting new strikes in Gaza despite a ceasefire, as Gaza officials reported at least two deaths from overnight strikes.

EU Trade Chief Maros Sefcovic will meet Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing for two days of negotiations, with Brussels hoping for a modest 'proof-of-concept' arrangement despite a widening trade surplus and low expectations for significant rebalancing.

Since the United States and Israel launched air strikes on Iran on February 28, and Iran launched attacks on US military bases in Persian Gulf countries, the conflict between the United States and Iran has entered its eighth month. U.S. President Trump said that the biggest problem he faces now is that no one knows who is in charge of Iran now. Iran's former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamini was allegedly killed in an airstrike, and his son Mujtaba took over but was injured and did not appear in public. A spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused US officials of contradictory positions and mixed messages.

The FBI arrested 34-year-old Chinese-American female real estate agent Zhang Wanying at the Los Angeles Airport on suspicion of receiving instructions from the Chinese government to monitor Lai Ting, the eldest son of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te, and a Taiwanese elected official who made strong anti-CCP remarks. The indictment shows that Zhang met with a Chinese official and discussed the official's address, which was concealed in the document.

The German economy has long been dependent on the Chinese market, which has often hindered the EU's tough policies toward China in the past. But as China's dumping of cheap goods threatened German industry, Germany's policy changed. Süddeutsche Zeitung commented that Beijing has long used a "carrot and stick" divide and rule strategy against member states. Although Germany is worried about retaliation, it is promoting new mechanisms with France to reduce the influence of individual countries on EU decision-making, aiming to weaken Beijing's differentiation strategy.