Unprincipled US losing trust of world

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's dialogue with The Wall Street Journal on April 1 during his working visit to the United States should have offered Washington some food for thought.

Lee said that he hoped the US would not describe the Ukraine conflict as a war between democracy and authoritarianism, and would not take advantage of it to try and isolate China, which will only further complicate the already tense Sino-US relations. He also said that the US should not define China's stance over the Ukraine crisis as standing on the wrong side.

These remarks not only reflect Singapore's concerns but those of other countries in the Asia-Pacific as well. The new uncertainties in Sino-US relations originate not only from their different stances on the Ukraine crisis, but more importantly the political manipulation of some US politicians.

The three principles China stresses to explain its stance on the Ukraine crisis are peace is most precious, security is indivisible, and there should be no double standard in handling international relations. These apply to both Russia and Ukraine.

Peace can only be established on the basis of safeguarding national sovereignty, which is also the first principle of international relations. Without this principle, international relations would be impossible.

That security is indivisible emphasizes that there is no unilateral security, and the security of one country cannot be sacrificed at the expense of the security of other countries.

As to no double standards, that is easier to understand, as many wars that members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have participated in since the end of the Cold War can be attributed to a double standard.

As such, China's stance on the Ukraine crisis is impartial and its purpose is to safeguard the international order. As Lee said, the US is trying to make use of the Ukraine crisis to create binary opposition in the world.

So far, the US has sent weapons worth about $2.5 billion to Ukraine, which rather than calming the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has resulted in more casualties, refugees and confrontation. As have the sanctions the US and its allies have imposed on Russia, which have expanded to more than 80,000 kinds of commodities and services, seriously affecting the stability of the international supply chains and the stability of international finance.

The mismatch between the US deeds and words on dealing with China also increases the uncertainties of its relations with China, as Lee has pointed out. The US side should show more foresight by exploring the building of a new type of major country relations with China.