Excerpt of Responses by PM Lee Hsien Loong at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit Joint Press Conference Q&A Segment

Australian Financial Review: What concrete actions will Australia and ASEAN take to address China’s conduct in the South China Sea?

PM Lee Hsien Loong: ASEAN countries all have broad and substantial relationships with China, cooperating over many issues, many areas. For many of the ASEAN countries, China is in fact their biggest trading partner. The South China Sea is an issue for specific ASEAN countries which are claimant states, in particular, that means Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Philippines. It is an issue for the rest of the ASEAN countries too because this is a security and stability question in South East Asia which will affect all ASEAN countries if it goes wrong. I would say that the parties have been working towards discussing this issue and making progress on it. Last year, we had agreed on the framework for the Code of Conduct between ASEAN and China. This year we have agreed to commence negotiations on the Code of Conduct. This is an issue which we can manage, which we can help to prevent from escalating, but it is not an issue which can in a definitive way, be solved in any short period of time. We have to accept that and work together in good faith, and to the utmost ability which we have, in order to maintain a stable situation and gradually to make progress, which is what we are doing.

Seven Network: Prime Ministers, was Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib correct when he said that the Rohingya refugee crisis is now developing as a security threat for the whole region? Specifically, Mr Turnbull, what are you going to say to Aung San Suu Kyi about the crisis when you get the chance to address her on it?

PM Lee: I think this is a question which you should address to Prime Minister Najib because he made the comment and he, I am sure, had reasons for doing so. All of us in the region will be anxious if there is any instability or trouble in any of our member countries. We are also concerned as human beings if there is a humanitarian situation which has developed, and people’s welfare and lives and safety are at stake, and we do our best to help the governments to re-establish stability and tranquillity in the situation. I do not have any specific intelligence on what is happening in Rakhine state and whether there are terrorist groups as is being suggested. These are possibilities which you cannot rule out and which you have to keep on being on the watch out for.

I think it is an issue which the leaders will talk about and we will exchange views and frankly the constraints, concerns and considerations we have. It is an issue which is also in the public attention and it is one of those where intense public attention sometimes makes it more difficult to solve. It is just in the nature of the matter.

Today Online: Are you satisfied broadly with the outcomes that have been reached at this Summit? Second for PM Turnbull on the initiative on the smart and sustainable cities, is the $30 million investment enough for the projects that both sides will undertake? Third, a large focus of this Summit has been cooperation to counter-terrorism, with the landmark agreement yesterday. But Southern Philippines has been a hotspot. Did the absence of the top Filipino leader affect discussions on the issue of terrorism?

PM Lee: Just very briefly on the first two questions, I am very happy with the outcomes from this Summit meeting. The purpose of this Summit is to focus our minds, to give our civil servants the impetus to complete specific projects, and at the same time to have top level exchange of views and a review of where we stand in the relationship. And that we have achieved.

On the smart cities, I would not argue whether you have more or less money. The challenge with smart cities is not finding the money. The challenge with smart cities is to make the implementation and to change the ways in which our cities and administrations operate to make full use of the technology. And in this case jointly to be able to work together to interoperate and to share approaches and have compatible ways of doing things, which will widen the footprints for our residents and our citizens to be able to use the facilities across borders, and for the administrations to be able to learn from each other’s experiences. So I am very happy that the Australian Government is pursuing this, and I am quite sure that as and when specific, attractive projects come up, which will happen, those projects will find no difficulty getting funded.

Business Indonesia: My first question is: what regulations or policies have the Australian Government prepared to facilitate cooperation with ASEAN in terms of counter-terrorism? Is there any special policy in addition to the White Paper on foreign policy that was published last November? The second one is about the Sydney Declaration. Is it the result of the meeting at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit 2018?

PM Lee: I agree completely with Prime Minister Turnbull. The legal framework varies from country to country, depends on your history or political climate, the attitudes of your population. But the intelligence which needs to be shared, the techniques which need to be shared and even the technical assistance, which can be very, very valuable. I think these are things which go on quietly and which are essential, if we are going to work together internationally, in order to deal with the transboundary threat. I can say that between Singapore and Australia, and I think many other ASEAN countries too, there is a lot of cooperation going on in counter-terrorism, and the conference yesterday gives it the symbolic presence and recognition, and it is an impetus to our people on both sides, let us do more, work even more closely together.

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