International
Singapore closes the Lee era with the investiture of Lawrence Wong as prime minister
Lawrence Wong was sworn in on Wednesday as Prime Minister of Singapore, which puts an end to Lee Hsien Loong’s two-decades in office and closes the era in power of this popular dynasty, which turned the island into one of the most prosperous countries on the planet.
Wong, until now vice prime minister, today became the fourth leader in the history of the small Southeast Asian nation in an investiture ceremony at the Istana Palace of Singapore, officiated by the country’s president, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, which began around 7:00 p.m. local time (11.00 GMT).
“I swear to protect and defend the Constitution of Singapore,” Wong stressed during the ceremony, broadcast live.
The appointment of Wong, 51, is a before and after in the Asian city-state, since it is the first time that the country does not have any Lee on the political scene, dominated by the family since the mandate of Lee Kuan Yew (1959-1990), “father” of the homeland and the predecessor of the new prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong.
At 72 years old, the firstborn of the deceased Lee Kuan Yew left the position today, as he announced last month, after two decades in power and after having anticipated for years that he would delegate the position to someone younger.
Lee participated in the ceremony and today swore in a ministerial position in Wong’s cabinet, which maintains the heavyweights of the former leader, as he announced this week.
“I am deeply honored (…) I am looking for your trust and support. My team and I will do everything in our man,” Wong said first in English when he got on the stand already as prime minister, and then pronounce a few words in Chinese, Malay and Tamil, the official languages of Singapore.
“Today we are living a milestone. I am the first leader born after independence (1965),” Wong stressed, while praising the legacy of his predecessors and appealing to national unity.
Although Wong, a member like Lee of the formation that has ruled Singapore since its independence, the People’s Action Party (PAP), is expected to adopt a continuist policy with respect to Lee, the current situation suggests that he will have to undertake some changes.
The also Minister of Finance will have to face greater friction between China and the United States and a decline in liberalization, the basis of Singapore’s success, dependent on exports.
“We are facing a world of conflict and rivalries and protectionism (…) We must be friends with everyone while defending our interests,” Wong proclaimed in his speech.
Likewise, Wong, a former official who officially entered politics in 2011 as a deputy, will have to face greater discontent among the population in the face of the high cost of living and the increase in inequalities.
The new leader of Singapore, who went from being a fishing island to one of the countries with the highest GDP per capita following Lee Kuan Yew’s road map – a combination of economic apertourism and control of freedoms – will also have to manage demographic problems and immigration avoiding friction.
The local population (75% ethnically Chinese, 14% Malaysian and 9% Indian) demands more job opportunities in a country that has depended heavily on immigration (about 1.7 million of the total of 5.6 million inhabitants) and that currently has one of the lowest fertility rates on the planet (0.97 in 2023).
“We will fight for a fairer society,” Wong emphasized today, adding that we will have to take “new paths and (take) new solutions.”
Wong will also have to show that the PAP can win electorally without the Lees, when the country has to hold the next general elections before November 2025.
International
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump criticized what he described as unfair fees imposed on American ships passing through the Panama Canal and threatened to demand that Washington take back control of the strategic waterway.
“Our Navy and commerce have been threatened in a very unjust and reckless way. The rates that Panama charges are ridiculous,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect also denounced the growing influence of China in the canal, a situation he called concerning as U.S. businesses depend on the waterway to transport goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
“This complete scam against our country will end immediately,” he stated.
The Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was handed over to Panama under the 1977 treaty signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter. Panama took full control of the commercial passage in 1999.
“It was exclusively for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else,” Trump said. “We would never allow it to fall into the wrong hands!”
“If Panama cannot guarantee a ‘safe, efficient, and reliable’ operation of the canal, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in its entirety, without a doubt,” the Republican added.
Panamanian authorities did not immediately respond to Trump’s statements. While he will assume office on January 20, Trump has been exerting his political influence in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, which allows vessels traveling from Asia to the U.S. East Coast to avoid the long and dangerous route around the southern tip of South America.
The countries that use the Panama Canal the most are the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea.
In October, the Panama Canal Authority reported earnings of nearly $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
International
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised more “destruction” in Ukraine on Sunday, in response to a drone strike that hit a residential building in the city of Kazan, located in central Russia, on Saturday.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a “massive” drone attack, which struck a luxury apartment block in Kazan, about 1,000 kilometers from the border.
Videos shared on Russian social media show drones hitting a high-rise glass building. No casualties have been reported as a result of the attack.
In his statements, Putin addressed the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a virtual ceremony marking the opening of a road.
The attack in Kazan is the latest in a series of increasingly frequent bombings in this nearly three-year-old conflict. Ukraine has not commented on the attack.
Putin had previously threatened to strike the center of Kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities were retaliation for Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied missiles to target Russian territory.
International
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
At least nine people were killed on Sunday after a small aircraft crashed in a commercial area of the tourist city of Gramado, in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities confirmed.
“There are nine confirmed deaths according to Civil Defense services, and there are no survivors from the plane,” said Cléber dos Santos Lima, director of the Interior Police Department of the Civil Police of the state, in a statement to AFP.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the exact number of passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a turbo-prop Piper Cheyenne 400. However, Civil Defense had previously stated that “preliminarily, the plane was carrying ten people.”
The plane crashed on Sunday morning “into the chimney of a building, then onto the second floor of a house, and finally fell onto a furniture store,” according to a statement from the Rio Grande do Sul Public Security Secretariat.
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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