World leaders must strengthen global trading system, get politics right: PM Lee

Osaka

AT a summit bogged down by simmering trade tensions, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong called on world leaders to strengthen the global trading system instead of pulling it down, adding that a key part of doing so is getting their politics right.

This will help sustain policies that support global trade and investment, which in turn will benefit citizens, he said on the first day of the G-20 Leaders' Summit in Osaka. "Leaders must explain the challenges and trade-offs clearly and honestly to voters, persuade them and work together with them to promote their own long-term interests," he said.