Singapore

SINGAPORE, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The United States and China must learn to cooperate with each other for the benefit of the world, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said.

The impact would be felt broadly should relations sour between the two countries, Lee said, speaking virtually last week at the inaugural Global Forum on Economic Recovery hosted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

"You are going to have a state of tension -- anxiety at the very least and conflict possibly -- all over the world," Lee said.

SINGAPORE (AP) — Singapore criticized an Indian politician on Wednesday for making unfounded claims on social media that a new COVID-19 variant in Singapore was particularly harmful to children and could cause a fresh surge of infections in India.

Singapore’s Foreign Ministry said it summoned India’s high commissioner over the comments made by Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, India’s capital territory.

New Delhi, May 19 (PTI) Singapore on Wednesday conveyed to Indian High Commissioner P Kumaran its strong objection to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's comments that a variant of COVID-19 found in that country was particularly harmful to children and could cause a third wave of infections in India.

Following Singapore foreign ministry's reaction regretting the "unfounded assertions" by Kejriwal, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the Delhi chief minister does not speak for India.

SINGAPORE, Apr 24 (NNN-CNA) – Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, announced here yesterday a cabinet reshuffle, with seven of the 15 ministries to be headed by new ministers starting from May 15.

Ong Ye Kung will transfer from Minister for Transport to Minister for Health, and co-chair the multi-ministry task force handling COVID-19 with Lawrence Wong.

Minister for Education and the Second Minister for Finance, Lawrence Wong, will replace Heng Swee Keat as the Finance Minister.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore’s foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan has called the situation in Myanmar “an unfolding tragedy” that will take time to overcome, and said it was essential for Southeast Asian countries to have a position on how to respond.

“It is going to take quite some time to resolve. I must confess to you that I am pessimistic,” Balakrishnan told local media, according to a transcript released on Monday.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a TV interview he hoped Singapore would start re-opening its borders by the end of the year as more countries ramp up vaccination drives against COVID-19 infections.

The Southeast Asian island nation has largely banned leisure travel, but has put in place some business and official travel programmes. It is also discussing the mutual recognition of vaccine certificates with other nations.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore and Australia are discussing an air travel bubble that would allow travel between the two countries without the need for quarantine, looking to reopen borders that have been mostly shut for nearly a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Both countries have largely brought the virus under control, helped by international border closures, lockdowns and strict social-distancing rules.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent crude prices eased on Friday but hovered near $70 a barrel as production cuts by major oil producers constrained supply, with optimism about a recovery in demand for the resource in the second half of the year also lending support.

Brent crude futures for May slipped 33 cents, or 0.5%, to $69.30 a barrel by 0749 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for April was at $65.65 a barrel, down 37 cents, or 0.6%.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Armed Myanmar soldiers and police are using TikTok to deliver death threats to protesters against last month’s coup, researchers said, prompting the Chinese video-sharing app to announce it was removing content that incites violence.

Digital rights group Myanmar ICT for Development (MIDO) said it had found over 800 pro-military videos that menaced protesters at a time of increasing bloodshed - with 38 protesters killed on Wednesday alone according to the United Nations.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Facebook on Thursday said it had banned the Myanmar military from using its Facebook and Instagram platforms with immediate effect, as weeks of mass demonstrations continue in the Southeast Asian country after the military seized power.

“Events since the February 1 coup, including deadly violence, have precipitated a need for this ban,” Facebook said in a blog post. “We believe the risks of allowing the Tatmadaw (Myanmar army) on Facebook and Instagram are too great.”