We never thought that it would happen, but it had to, eventually. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong dropped by the White House to meet up with US President Donald Trump and talk Serious Issues.
Re-affirming the tight relationship both countries already enjoyed prior to the Trump administration, the leaders took relations to the next level with a nearly US$14 billion deal for Singapore Airlines (SIA) to purchase 39 Boeing aircraft.
President Trump, in particular, had some choice words for Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, who led “one of the incredible economic and political achievements of the past 50 years”. The US president also praised Singapore’s dedication in fighting terrorism, noting how the country was the first Southeast Asian nation to join the coalition to defeat ISIS.
Trump appreciated the times when Singapore deployed resources during crises like Hurricane Harvey and the USS John McCain collision as well.
It was a largely cordial meeting, but not without a gaffe, Yahoo Singapore reported. A post on Trump’s Facebook page referred to PM Lee as “Prime Minister Loong”, though that was quickly corrected later on.
Yahoo also noted how US presidents before him faced their own difficulties in pronouncing the names of Singapore’s leaders — President Obama fumbled in pronouncing the name of PM Lee’s father, while President Ronald Reagan referred to Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew’s wife as “Mrs. Yew”.
As for Trump, we’ll never forget the time when he (or one of his aides) mistook PM Lee for Indonesia’s President Jokowi.
