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Singapore Patronizes Allies in WikiLeaks Cables
Singaporean diplomats think the leaders of some close Asian allies, including neighboring Malaysia, are corrupt, incompetent or stupid, cables from WikiLeaks revealed on Sunday.
Confidential diplomatic notes given by the Web site to Australia’s Fairfax media group contained unflattering assessments of key figures in Malaysia, Thailand, India and Japan.
“A lack of competent leadership is a real problem for Malaysia,” permanent secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bilahari Kausikan, reportedly told US Deputy Secretary of Defense for East Asia David Sedney.
As a result, “the situation in neighboring Malaysia is confused and dangerous” and there is a “distinct possibility of racial conflict,” according to the cable dated September 2008.
Another official, Peter Ho, reportedly described Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak as “an opportunist” who “would not hesitate” to be critical of Singapore if “it is expedient for him to do so.”
Bilahari was also reportedly critical of the Thai government, labeling fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra “corrupt” along with “everyone else, including the opposition.”
In a 2009 memo, Singapore’s ambassador-at-large Tommy Koh — known for being mild-mannered and eloquent in public — was uncharacteristically blunt in his assessment of regional heavyweights Japan and India.
“Koh described Japan as ‘the big fat loser’ in the context of improving ties between China and Asean,” a leaked cable detailing a meeting between him and US officials stated.
“He attributed the relative decline of Japan’s stature in the region to Japan’s ‘stupidity, bad leadership, and lack of vision.’”
“He was equally merciless toward India, describing his ‘stupid Indian friends’ as ‘half in, half out’ of Asean,’” it added.
The cables also indicated that Singapore leaders believe Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim had sex with a male aide in a honey trap set by his enemies.
“The Australians said that Singapore’s intelligence services and [former Prime Minister] Lee Kuan Yew have told [Office of National Assessments] in their exchanges that opposition leader Anwar ‘did indeed commit the acts for which he is currently indicted,’” a November 2008 US State Department cable read.
It added that Singapore reached its conclusion based on “technical intelligence.”
“ONA assessed and their Singapore counterparts concurred, ‘it was a set-up job and he probably knew that, but walked into it anyway,’” the leaked cable wrote.
Anwar, 63, has vehemently denied sodomizing his aide, 25-year-old Mohamad Saiful Bukhari Azlan, claiming he was the victim of a political conspiracy.
AFP
Singaporean diplomats think the leaders of some close Asian allies, including neighboring Malaysia, are corrupt, incompetent or stupid, cables from WikiLeaks revealed on Sunday.
Confidential diplomatic notes given by the Web site to Australia’s Fairfax media group contained unflattering assessments of key figures in Malaysia, Thailand, India and Japan.
“A lack of competent leadership is a real problem for Malaysia,” permanent secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bilahari Kausikan, reportedly told US Deputy Secretary of Defense for East Asia David Sedney.
As a result, “the situation in neighboring Malaysia is confused and dangerous” and there is a “distinct possibility of racial conflict,” according to the cable dated September 2008.
Another official, Peter Ho, reportedly described Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak as “an opportunist” who “would not hesitate” to be critical of Singapore if “it is expedient for him to do so.”
Bilahari was also reportedly critical of the Thai government, labeling fugitive former premier Thaksin Shinawatra “corrupt” along with “everyone else, including the opposition.”
In a 2009 memo, Singapore’s ambassador-at-large Tommy Koh — known for being mild-mannered and eloquent in public — was uncharacteristically blunt in his assessment of regional heavyweights Japan and India.
“Koh described Japan as ‘the big fat loser’ in the context of improving ties between China and Asean,” a leaked cable detailing a meeting between him and US officials stated.
“He attributed the relative decline of Japan’s stature in the region to Japan’s ‘stupidity, bad leadership, and lack of vision.’”
“He was equally merciless toward India, describing his ‘stupid Indian friends’ as ‘half in, half out’ of Asean,’” it added.
The cables also indicated that Singapore leaders believe Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim had sex with a male aide in a honey trap set by his enemies.
“The Australians said that Singapore’s intelligence services and [former Prime Minister] Lee Kuan Yew have told [Office of National Assessments] in their exchanges that opposition leader Anwar ‘did indeed commit the acts for which he is currently indicted,’” a November 2008 US State Department cable read.
It added that Singapore reached its conclusion based on “technical intelligence.”
“ONA assessed and their Singapore counterparts concurred, ‘it was a set-up job and he probably knew that, but walked into it anyway,’” the leaked cable wrote.
Anwar, 63, has vehemently denied sodomizing his aide, 25-year-old Mohamad Saiful Bukhari Azlan, claiming he was the victim of a political conspiracy.
AFP
