Lines of communication especially important between adversaries: Ng

Both US and China are working towards resuming dialogue: S'pore Defence Minister

- Lim Min Zhang

Lines of communication should be established not just among friends, but more so between adversaries, said Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen, while noting that the current freeze between the United States and China was of concern.

Speaking to reporters after hosting a lunch for 29 visiting ministers and representatives at the ShangriLa Dialogue on Saturday, Dr Ng said that even two sides who are in conflict want to be able to pick up the phone and de-escalate tensions.

For instance, amid its invasion of Ukraine, Russian defence leaders can still pick up the phone and somebody will answer on the other side, said Dr Ng. The need for open lines to be maintained was true during the Cold War, and remains true in the current Ukraine conflict, he added.

"You really want to establish these lines, so obviously when you don't have these lines, then everyone is worried." There has been no formal meeting between the US and China defence leaders at the three-day annual security forum that started on Friday, unlike at the 2022 dialogue, when the two sides met for close to an hour.