I was reading this about Richard Holbrooke, who died yesterday. He was famous for being an undiplomatic career diplomat who achieved great diplomatic successes, when diplomatic diplomats failed.
The tot struck me that our trio of diplomats quoted may have been trying to emulate him?
If they were, they forgot that the US is the hegemon, while S’pore is a “little speck” or is it “dot”? Holbrooke was the modern equivalent of a Roman envoy when the Romans ruled the West and the Middle East, or of admiral Cheng Ho when the Ming dynasty sent its navy to SE Asia. Today the US is the only military super power, and the spender of last resort for the global economy. Our diplomats should think of themselves as the envoys of vassal states to the court of the Roman or Chinese emperor.
But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe they were trying to emulate one LKY?
Update at 9.32an
It juz struck me. What were our diplomats doing telling the US abt what they tot abt our neighbours and regional powers? Sakkaing US or saboing our neighbours and others?
