What we get wrong about China. George Yeo in conversation with Alex Stubb

[@stgseries]

China in Europe’s Future and Europe in China’s Future - A keynote speech by George Yeo kzbin.info/www/bejne/hnbFpKCwhKZoftU

[@yunzhao1841]

底下评论真的充分体现英文世界的愚昧不堪。如果欧美还是这种民主专制，洗脑化、宗教化的认知水平，早晚有一天中华文明已经开启星际文明，你们还在地球打嘴炮。中国的成功关键很简单，遵循实践是检验真理的唯一标准，所有概念理论，都必须结合中国的实践来判断是否正确。欧美很擅长制造新概念来让维护自身地位，但面对中国打破他们的宣传后，就越来越多依赖于谎言了。

[@jasha9sandhu]

Communist China occupied Tibet, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia - Yeh definitely China isn't"expansionist" 😂😂😂

[@garyang5430]

@@jasha9sandhu you should learn more about history before yapping around make a stupid comments. jealousy is a poison for your heart.

[@keviny354]

@@jasha9sandhu How ignorant you are!🙄

[@malita354]

George, you know what is 漢賊不兩立? Have you pointed out even 1 wrong doing of China? Or are you intellectually honest?

[@tubbietubby]

I'm a Taiwanese. Taiwan, its formal name Republic of China, is a province of China. Republic of China governs the Province of Taiwan, and part of Province of Fujian (Kinmen), which is only 3 km away from Mainland China. Taiwan has been a province of China and a part of China for centuries since the Qing Dynasty, for longer than the history of the U.S.

[@hehehe5198]

😅

[@sekaiinfini]

That is so true. Ever since 1683. Part of the U.S. today was still a British colony.

[@HAGS0999]

​@@sekaiinfini 1783* and just 13 colonies.

[@weanzen1107]

How do you define China? China under CCP?

[@sekaiinfini]

@@weanzen1107CCP is just a measure. It’s the people that define China.

[@ymw321]

The most insightful message by Yeo is "watch the full video, not just a few snapshots, before drawing your conclusion"! Unfortunately, quite a few making comments here did not seem to get the message. In this easy media era where snapshots are abundant but full videos lacking, people seldom have the patience to watch full videos. Very often I hear comments about China from those who clearly have no idea what China is like and are simply repeating what they read from Western media. There is no exception here.

[@mjlambert210]

i watched 10 minutes of it. Ive been struggling not to post a comment about how Yeo doesnt actually answer any questions. It seems more like he is just repeating general rhetoric rather than any practical obsevations or useful information. Seems just. China cool. China interesting. China big. yeah....those things are true...but not an answer, and not relevant.

[@ymw321]

@@mjlambert210 you are right: Mr Yeo wasn't answering any questions directly. What he was trying to say is: China is way too complicated for casual discussion. Before you try to pass a judgement on China, try to have some basic understanding. Just like if you try to talk about a movie, don't start from a few snapshots. Try to watch it from begin to end a few times first. Of course this is not to say everyone who cares should go to China, stay there for a few years, tour around the country and talk to the people there. But for many politicians, journalists, commentators and analysts, talking about China based on what they read in the media or hearsay is just like talking about a movie based on a few flyers advertising the movie. If you try to find a simple answer, here is one: China is the sleeping lion who is waking up, but she is not a lion who wants to take over the world; it's not in her gene. But she is the Lion King in her territory or sphere of influence. Try to live with her peacefully albeit competitively, she would do the same in return.

[@mjlambert210]

@@ymw321 this is a terrible statement. It’s exactly what I was critiquing about mr. Yeo’s statements. You aren’t answering the question of what practical things can the world do to interact with China on a respectful level. To just answer with “you can’t have a casual discussion about china” What? This isn’t casual. This is supposed to be education and informative. An intentional conversation.

[@ymw321]

@@mjlambert210 I think you just answered your question: being "respectful". Macron was being respectful when he went to China, so he could conduct meaningful and constructive conversations with Chinese leaders. All Chinese leaders want is just that, respect. Unfortunately this is not the case with US politicians. They don't have the patience trying to understand China's values and instead try to impose their values upon the Chinese. That is disrespect. If one insists on some "universal values" and these so-called universal values are defined by the West, then there is no conversation but only "education". I believe this is also the point Mr. Yeo tried to make.

[@careyfreeman5056]

It's the same CCP crap I've heard a thousand times. "China's culture is "different"". Translation: The Chinese people are too dumb to think for themselves and need a mommy-state like the CCP to look over them like children. Asian Logic = Self-Serving Logic.

[@yifuhood]

It's rare to let someone speak with a positive vision of China.I see some people are upset about it in the comments. I have seen many people speak against China without any challenge most of the time, if not all the time

[@buildmotosykletist1987]

So you don't think the CCP should be challenged when they threaten to "Nuke" other countries ???

[@xiaofengli4426]

This is called freedom of press, which really presses you when you have different opinions.

[@adamcroft3705]

Amen

[@buildmotosykletist1987]

@@adamcroft3705 : So you support threatening to "Nuke" other countries.

[@Thekidisalright]

@@buildmotosykletist1987 US has done so numerous times but I don’t see the likes of you complaining

[@marklee8512]

For your information, there is a group of originally Chinese citizens who have migrated to other countries due to a few reasons: especially during the era before 2010 when China was not so prosperous, was being swayed by the so-called freedom of the world outside China, for the well being of their future generations, etc. However, as China is becoming more and more prosperous and successful nowadays, it has created a rather unique situation where it has caused imbalance and twisted inner mind to this group of immigrants in the sense that they feel inferior to their peers who remained staying in China, especially when comparing to their close friends and relatives who have done much better than them. In order to strike a phycological balance, this group of people tend to spread any info in trying to smear and defame China while continue worshipping the so-called freedom and human rights of their newly adopted countries whenever possible. They just couldn't live a day without thinking back of China and the decisions they have made, kind of mental struggle. These people are called the "motherland haters". What a weird and miserable species of human🤭

[@cybourne5910]

People who can't live with their mistakes....sad, but nothing new really

[@wyz9815]

You nail it! 👍👍👍👍👍 Really sorry for these guys.

[@slchoong007]

On top of that they wouldn't mention they are being treated like second class citizens in their adopted countries

[@fannybirot2362]

So damn right!

[@kalarmsojib7225]

This is called "convert fanaticism"

[@bernardwangg]

I watched the whole video throughout my dinner, enjoyed it thoroughly. 😊

[@bruce6846]

I'm a Chinese and I think Mr. Yeo presented the most vital approach to understand China, which is through history. One can not understand China without taking historical element into account, because history has been playing a important, if not the most important role in China's government, foreign affair, commerce, much more.

[@marcelbork92]

The Chinese dudes with whom I talked they were all utterly uninterested in history. Which really struck me at the time, to the point that I really got annoyed and even angry with them. Whenever i wanted to talk with them about ANYTHING lying in the past, the stereotypical answer was always: That's ALREADY OVER (这个已经去过了), we can't change it (无法改变了), now we must look forward blablah. It would be wrong if I said "I do not buy that history crap", nay, I DO KNOW FOR SURE that for all normal people, especially the young, who are not working for the government, "history" means nothing.

[@strassmanncai]

Common understanding of history formed the backbone of Chinese culture, not religion.

[@ruiferreira6578]

Yes, the history of Mao's communist revolution. And don't you think that communism, Mao or revolution are used in some bad way. No.

[@ruiferreira6578]

@@strassmanncai you mean, common indoctrination?

[@graphemelucid8407]

The westerners will just take all the bad history wrap it up and conclude the Chinese are bad. Simply they love to demonize Asians they think we're obedient and weak. Indeed Americans and Europeans have fought most of wars these 200 years or so. Orientalism in the history, Japan bashing in the 80s, China phobia now, they always do this way looking down on Asians while self reinfocing the idea of their beloved twisted democracy based on the foundation of sacrificing non white human rights.

[@dyu007]

Americans have never met an Asian who will say "no" to them until they met Chinese. That's what is making Washington uncomfortable.

[@WingkKong]

Because China is as powerful as American now How can American stand that

[@dyu007]

China's GDP still $7 trillion behind US. China still has a few years to go yet.

[@view1st]

​@@dyu007 Are you aware that the USA is 38 trillions in debt? And that, as well as being a poor metric by which to measure a country's economy, the USA uses misleading data to inflate its GDP, doing the same with its unemployment data too. Lying to others to cover up weakness is permissible, but lying to yourself is not a good idea.

[@lordhe11iaon95]

@@WingkKongit’s why they see China as their greatest enemy because it terrifies them

[@dunzhen]

Exactly. Very few countries on this planet can and will talk back to Americans....And when the supposedly docile, submissive, kowtowing Asian dares speak back it just especially rubs Anglo Saxon leaders wrong. I could use stronger language but I won't. China is bringing dignity back to Asia...which has been a brothel and stomping ground for colonizers, even now in several areas

[@xiaofengli4426]

I always admire diplomats from Singapore. Like George Yeo, they are clear minded, full of wisdom and analyse situations in a calm and impartial way. Thank you Alex to bring George on the platform.

[@markiobook8639]

Because he echoes the Communist line.

[@steveleung6271]

He has lots of BS.

[@IA100KPDT]

@@markiobook8639 1450

[@GGY-yh6li]

@@markiobook8639 What is ideological bias, you gave the answer.

[@jarvisshan7196]

@@markiobook8639 😅smart

[@kfmantis8527]

Fascinating conversation about China with George Yeo. This is the first time I watch any video twice!

[@ApriYangXiJie]

@olivierverdys4673who are you again?

[@angelineshen1571]

unbelievable mind! what a great interview

[@anthonyyoung6489]

4:01 I think China should understand the USA. Not the other way around. We dealt with an Asian nation that had world domination on its mind before. It was Japan. China needs to understand the USA. We under the direction China is going. We’ve seen it before.

[@hungryghost3260]

Exactly: some in the Japanese Imperial leadership understood how Tojo and others had screwed up in assuming that the US was weak/corrupt/decadent and thus wouldn't fight. Less than four years later, it was all over.

[@deebil8099]

If China had even half of the military power of the U.S., they would have invaded and taken over every Asian country by now.

[@ruifenghuang1029]

How many American policy makers/think tankers has education in China, about China, learned Chinese. How many Chinese think tankers/policy makers has educations in the West, about the West, learned English. Let me give you a contrast Xijinping's first visit to US was in 1985, part of a delegation to learn about agriculture, Pelosi first visit to China is 1991 to protest about Tiananmen

[@kkpenney444]

@@ruifenghuang1029 Chinese don't come to the US to 'learn', but to steal- intelligence and technology. And the US was the first to open up to China via Nixon, not the other way around.

[@civicblade1]

China understand the USA. Look at the ambassadors China sent to USA and to Europe, most of them speak the native tongue of their host countries and were educated there. On the contrary, most of the US ambassadors to China does not understand or speak Chinese. The reason China does what it does today is because they have a good understand of the USA. What USA does today (to China) is because they are obsessed with maintaining US dominance over the world and a has a severe lack of understanding of China. The reason China understands USA is because of the deep respect that China has for the US. China respects you therefore they send diplomats who can under your language to your country to foster deeper ties and cooperation. US on the other hand sends diplomats to wants to lecture China and force China to do what the US wants China to do.

[@JIANGTG]

1. What we get wrong about China ? 2. The root cause is the wrong mindset and incorrect perception. In other words , it can be stated that many countries do not have open mind and BIG HEARTS to accept China's rise. They are filled with jealousy and anger which are not good for their countries' advancement. 3. What is most important is that these countries should scrutinize China's " success formula " and adopt those portion which can suit their countries' domestic and unique conditions. 4. It is good to understand that ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME. The mindset of " Democracy and Liberal Plutocracy -- the best political system " can no longer be practical for all countries.

[@sweetchinmusic801]

What we get wrong about China is how peacefully they torture Uighur muslims and other minorities and demolish their places of worship. And how shamelessly and hypocritically the OIC (Organization of Islamic Countries) and Pakistan ignores this while being concerned about the democracies of Israel, India and the West :D

[@一个说话大声的中国人]

Because the West loves China too much. Westerners love China so much, all Westerners have become Jesus, willing to die to bring democracy, justice, happiness, human rights, etc. to Chinese people. So, it has nothing to do with whether we are right or wrong about China.

[@titusp9488]

keyword : Empathy ... they can't understand because they dont care.

[@caomilo1031]

They have been used to such pride and arrogance for decades. Only when the western hegemony ends, people from the collective west can accept others’ merits with empathy.

[@CentauriSphere]

I'm not jealous about China's 'rise'. Didn't even hear/know anything about China until 2019 because it cuts itself off from the outside unfortunately. It was the CCPs atrocities against its own citizens that made me aware of China. The CCP is the thing everyone is critizising, not chinese culture or increased wealth over the last decades. Your blind swallowing of state propaganda is unfortunate and will not benefit you in life.

[@IreneMadridejo]

Thank you, values, of singapore minister george yeo.😊

[@jeffsure3135]

By comprehending Mr. Yeo's perspectives, I immediate realize Chinese people just have a gift in politics. Facing of many global issues as of now, most of answers seem already being written in chinese collapse-and-resurrection history.

[@晋国草民]

你说对了 5000年的成人和247年的孩子在对理解人生的真谛理解一样，谁懂得会更多？ 高下立判。

[@sofastorms1092]

History does help in someway but not for sure or not for that much, cause: 1. History tends to lost in details or sometimes are distorted in recording and understanding or interpretation, besides that, people are forgetful. 2. Even if you know history well, you just can't change the fate of a dynasty, in the past or in the future. Few people are powerful/smart enough to divert the cause of the established system, even if you know the problem, know the answer, just see how Trump MAGA.

[@justice9325]

@@晋国草民 一個 經過 5,000年進化的老人, 對於 尊重人權 尊重人性 尊重民主自由 的修為, 竟然 不及一個 進化只有 247年的小孩. 你是否覺得 這老人的 品質 品格 極為劣質, 不配做人類？

[@justice9325]

The ultimate goal of China is to destroy United States to dominate the world. 😢 😢 ❤ ❤ You know what the meaning of "China" is in Chinese. It means "a country in the middle of ... " or " 'Middle' Country". That is, all tribes around China are "barbarians" or "inferior tribes". The ancient emperors were called "The Son of Heaven (God) or 天子" For more than 3,500 years, the ancient China Dynasties always considered themselves to be superior to all surrounding tribes. For nearly every ancient China Dynasty, once they had got into a united, stable and prosperous state, they started expanding outward, annexing foreign territories, committing genocide on foreign tribes if necessary to eradicate any possible challenges. THIS, is the real China today you are facing. Don't be as naive as these scholars, who know so little about Chinese history.

[@水水淼淼]

@@justice9325 现在美国人会战斗到最后一个乌克兰人 以后美国人也会战斗到最后一个台湾人 只有美国人才配享有自由 其他的生物都是为实现美国自由的养料而已.

[@danlan3433]

Thank you,the great George Yeo of Singapore!

[@David-x2c8l]

a china lackey ?

[@chrispetrienet]

I thoroughly enjoyed this interview and found it to be quite insightful. However, I couldn't help but feel that it could have benefited from a longer duration, allowing for a deeper exploration of the topic and the inclusion of nuanced perspectives, similar to the podcasts hosted by Lex Fridman.

[@monophthalmus3254]

I used to be a fan of Lex until he brought Yeonmi Park on there. Giving her a platform for more propaganda was just insane.

[@elektrotehnik94]

@@monophthalmus3254 "insane".

[@ymw321]

@olivierverdys4673 The most insightful message by Yeo is "watch the full video, not just a few snapshots, before drawing your conclusion"! Unfortunately, quite a few making comments here did not seem to get the message. In this easy media era where snapshots are abundant but full videos lacking, people seldom have the patience to watch full videos. Very often I hear comments about China from those who clearly have no idea what China is like and are simply repeating what they read from Western media. There is no exception here.

[@hsiaofhongtan1933]

agreed - I could watch this if it was 2 hours

[@takanna]

​@@monophthalmus3254 i couldnt agree more.

[@gwaydust]

Would b good to do an interview with Taiwanese leader also. If opinion of someone who plays both sides matters, someone in the middle of the conflict should matter too?

[@ssss8162]

Oh the Taiwanese leader who is half Japanese you mean.

[@Qiushishuo]

Not the one who doesn't follow its constitution.

[@ECLiew-tw9fj]

How about Hawaii, Catalonia, or Scotland be invited too?

[@frankm6218]

You mean the tw leader who had been approved by Americans before he became a candidate? He will say whatever American wants him to say anyways, why even bother? 😊

[@dunzhen]

It's difficult...their leaders are so owned by America you will just hear terrible takes

[@007nait]

Thanks Alex for the very informative interview with Mr. Yeo. I really enjoyed listening to this conversation.

[@azuraelion]

Singapore officials, like this one, are always a two cuts above the typical bureaucrats you find in gov't.

[@GuJiuSuu]

A person's speech depends on his position. Both China and the United States have excellent and professional government officials, but because of their position, they have many topics that they can't say, which makes them look stupid, but they are usually very smart

[@philikesete]

When Yeo, Put it as Taiwan joining China as German Unification is the total opposite, the first thing is East German people were the ones who asked for unification, not West Germany. And Germany Supported when Hong Kong Unified with China, and look how things turn out for the people of Hong Kong. Oh, about China could only be governed through autocracy is an absolute nascence. Democracy is a human right.

[@banarama4144]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@starsmeng509]

So how things turn out for the people of Hongkong now?Do you know how things turn out before?Why pretend that you know the history of Hong Kong and the feelings of its people?

[@ruiferreira6578]

@@starsmeng509 obviously you don't

[@xmb6793]

@@ruiferreira6578 obviously you don't..

[@Chancellor-g9b]

Unified with who, the leasing agreement was expired and UK had no other choice but to return to China, it is china who would governed Hong Kong and it wasn't UK business to worry about hk. Since when coloniser cares about her former colonies well being and their economies. They always want them to be weak

[@morpheus3390]

His Catholic Church analogy is spot on. But, I think neither the CPC nor the Church like this comparison. Great interview.

[@raymondlee2306]

Our Mr George Yeo has the indept knowledge of history of the world. A true statesman.

[@wongcw08]

And man in the street as well. That is how Chinese are brought up.

[@David-x2c8l]

a china lackey ?

[@getsmart3701]

An excellent conversation and great to hear another viewpoint on China. It's easy to see how sharp Mr. Yeo and he makes some very insightful points that I hadn' t considered before. Very low volume was annoying though.

[@danielquantum143]

Mr George Yeo, when you were in PAP, I ignored all your speeches. This video gave me a refreshed view of you.

[@man-hotan9152]

Excellent discussion!

[@tinazelasky5908]

Such great wisdom. Excellent insight.

[@David-x2c8l]

a china lackey ?

[@imind00]

"China never wanted to conquor other nations"? What did it do to Tibet, Inner Mongolia, and Xingiang?

[@boat6771]

No, China didn't want to. If you are saying the long history, read some books in Yuan, Ming, Tsing Dynasty. There was certain complexity rather than "China conquers them".

[@boogieman4170]

The 3 provinces you mentioned were inherently china's since time immemorial not being conquered !

[@dunzhen]

To be fair that was under the Qing dynasty when manchus controlled China. That said I'm surprised Westerners have the audacity to talk about Tibet...in their eyes it should be the most legitimate land grab ever lol. And you must admit the material conditions and freedoms there have SKYROCKETED. Same is true for Xinjiang...which you should NOT believe Anglo Saxon media coverage of that region....alas, many still can't recognize when they're lied to.

[@MusicArchon]

Free punjab and gaza

[@happypanda7003]

Does South China Sea belongs to China ?

[@chitmengkhong4057]

Salaam Geirge Yeo Such clarity and grasp of geopolitical realities and possibilities

[@jameschu888]

For the most part I'd say I agree with Mr. Yeo's view points on geopolitics and China. However, I completely disagree with his views (16:59) on "European probably contributed more to the human civilization than any other continent"! I might be able to try to comprehend how he being a Singaporean like many of his compatriots has been raised basically with a British educational system and heavy western influence, would have a biased view of the European civilizations. Essentially, European colonialism had (the mindset is still alive today) brutally terrorized, robbed, murdered, exploited people in 4 continents for centuries. How could anyone in the right mind with any level of conscience say the European probably "contributed more to the human civilization than any other continent"?!?!

[@wowomah6194]

Because the systems of government we formed: democracies, are the best in the world for enabling prosperity and freedom and allowing the people to rule their own governments. Our nations are role models for how to behave as a society. You might say "oh well look at this problem your nation has!" and of course, no society is perfect, but the difference is that our societies created ways to recover from those problems without bloodshed and without war and without governmental repressions. You only need to look at the various success stories like Japan, South Korea or Taiwan to see that democracy really works.

[@jameschu888]

@@wowomah6194 LOL

[@cyansadventures]

​@wowomah6194 Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Hongkong - ALL started off and had their greatest economic growth as authoritarian governments. Every single one. SK and Taiwan - US supported military dictatorships until 1987. Hongkong - British governor's dictatorship until 1995. Singapore - de facto 1 party rule. Japan - de facto 1 party rule until 1993. Even Britain was an authoritarian dictatorship for the vast majority of its existence Democracy is a luxury for those who are already safe and rich.

[@HappyPandaBear73]

Thank you George Yeo! 👍🙏🙂

[@davidkoh7097]

"The passions of a democratic electorate can sometimes get out of control." Jeezus...

[@kingace6186]

A perfect example is the American people's and congresspersons' reactions after 9/11. America was united, but it definitely did get out of control (for an understatement).

[@joythought]

Spoken like a true authoritarianism who doesn't love populism or the need to channel the will of the people.

[@anthonyyoung6489]

I’m really disappointed this guy has a ccp troll and gives him airtime. It’s disgusting.

[@pierce6200]

What’s wrong with this statement? Remember how Hitler got his power?

[@theredbar-cross8515]

Is he wrong?

[@peetymcfly8871]

The future of China and the global order is uncertain. However, it is clear that China's rise will have a profound impact on the world. It is important to understand China's motivations and goals, and to develop strategies for managing the relationship between China and the United States. However, I do think that Yeo raises some important points. He is right to say that Europe needs to understand China better in order to play a constructive role in the global order. He is also right to say that China's rise is a challenge to the United States, but it is not an existential threat. The best way to manage the China challenge is through dialogue and cooperation. China and the United States have a lot to gain from working together, and they have a lot to lose if they allow their rivalry to escalate.

[@justinchang817]

Dialogues and cooperation between China and US have been going on from early 1970s until recent years. US, Europe, Japan, Taiwan all played big and constructive roles when China opened up in late 1970 through investments, capitals, know-how and technology transfers, entrepreneur management, market economy etc. US, Europe, and Japan helped China into the WTO - which propels rapid economical growth in China. China's high-speed rail system benefits tremendously from Japan and Europe's technology transfers. Many key components of China's newly developed commercial jet C919 are from the west. It costs less to ship a small package from China to US than a US domestic package from east coast to west coast - which is vital to many Chinese vendors selling goods through eBay, Amazon, Temu etc. There is a very substantial difference between the car import tax rate between US and China with US imposes a lot less tax rate. It didn't stop China from their military expansion in South China Sea and from threatening Taiwan - in addition to the tightening of freedom of speech in China under Xi and human right violations. What course of workable actions do you propose?

[@markiobook8639]

China must be destroyed and returned to its natural position- on its knees begging in a nation rife with warlordism and chaos. China overestimate the ability to resist this reversion to natural state.

[@als8627]

In business it is called stalling while putting a knife in your back. Chinese can handle things way faster than anyone if they want. So therefore dealing with China needs faster decisions no discussions at all my friend. Not sure if you have ever done business or lived in China ?

[@peetymcfly8871]

@@als8627 true that efficiency is often valued in business transactions, it is important to approach generalizations about an entire country or culture with caution. China, like any other nation, consists of a diverse range of individuals and businesses with varying approaches to decision-making and negotiations. in international business, it is crucial to establish effective communication channels and engage in discussions to ensure mutual understanding and successful outcomes. While there may be instances where quick decisions are necessary, many business transactions benefit from thorough discussions, exploring different perspectives, and reaching mutually beneficial agreements. furthermore, personal experiences and cultural understanding can greatly influence business interactions. While I don't have personal experiences or knowledge of your specific background, it is essential to approach cross-cultural business interactions with an open mind

[@peetymcfly8871]

@@justinchang817As for workable actions, maintaining open lines of communication, promoting dialogue at various levels, and fostering diplomatic relations are crucial. Encouraging transparency, adherence to international laws, and promoting respect for human rights can contribute to building trust and finding common ground. Additionally, engaging in multilateral forums and organizations can facilitate discussions and collaborations on regional and global issues. Its all been done.

[@brianmansan]

My wife is from Shandong province and we live & do business in South East Asia. Every time we watch Hollywood movie in the cinema she always says that the storyline is so simple & predictable. According to her, Chinese movie is far more complicated with so many up & down, left & right, compared to Hollywood movie in general. That is the difference between Chinese & Western cultures. You guys in the West think 100 steps ahead & Chinese thinks 10000 steps ahead. Chinese always thinks long term when taking action. They love money for sure, but they also love wisdom.

[@ruiferreira6578]

is that the reason they are so much cultural diverse and scientific and technological advanced compared to the western culture, of witch Hollywood is a tiny part? Do they have many movies about freedom of speech, political parties, religion, etc. Maybe they are all about that, but they are so much more complicated that you don't notice it. They have such a wisdom that they didn´t understand the seasons of the year and when to plant crops before 1500, when a Jesuit priest teached them. All cultures are important and we all can learn with different cultures.

[@darshanchung]

Like Wolf Warrior 1 and 2?

[@gibraltarchan9750]

PASS ON YRS & YR WIFE'S THOUGHTS....CHINA HAS RARELY EVER WANT TO CONFRONT, & YR COMMENTS ON THE MOVIES & U TUBE SERIALS ARE QUITE SPOT ON.......I AM A CHINES 76 YRS OLD , CLOSE LINK WITH CHINA BUT LIVED O/SEA FOR 50+ YEARS........I LIKE TO SHARE MY CHINESE WAYS IN ALL THE COUNTRIES I LIVED/WORKED IN . EVEN NOW I LEARN ALOT ABOUT HOW CHINA TACKLE/HANDLE THE EVER MORE MESSY/COMPLICATED SOCIAL ISSUES THAT THE WEST HAVE BROUGHT SINCE INTERNET/SMART PHONES FILTRATED INTO 80% OF CHINESE YOUTH'S HANDS

[@steely4you]

I don't think is a general rule I saw a different reasoning here in Richmond Canada

[@MRT-co1sd]

We love Jesus and everything will be on our side as we are god-fearing people.

[@glumour3081]

I agree with seeing China as a whole and thoroughly from history, where western countries forget that China already has civilization that has brought western countries forward; gunpowder, rockets, compasses, toothbrushes, mechanical clocks, etc.

[@SSDDssed]

"Toothbrushes" 🤣

[@glumour3081]

@@SSDDssed and you still use it ;(

[@SSDDssed]

@@ysw8291 let’s not pretend similar tools didnt exist before the tooth brush, like frayed twigs/chew sticks. The toothbrush is nice but it’s not that important for progress. And why does it matter which civilization invented what? Some individual humans are behind inventions. Nationality, race or religion is not that relevant here.

[@Azure-r4q]

​​@@SSDDssed It's the butterfly effect. Toothbrushes might seem like just another invention, but having it play a part in maintaining and resolving dental hygiene leading to people being healthy > making differences in the country in their own way that we cannot see. Thus I don't think toothbrushes "not important for progress" is the more accurate statement here. It's like saying torchlights are not as important for progress when you can just use candles imo

[@ruiferreira6578]

there were already compasses in the roman empire. And of course in the roman empire they invented concrete, people used short hair an toke a bath at least once a week for health reasons. after every thing was forgotten. I just don't understand why they did't invented a sewer system. If they had, we all would be talking Italian. Anyway It was a Jesuit that teached the seasons to the Chinese court so they could order the peasants to plant the crops accordingly an not random, so people would die with famine. and we gave china the writing as they gave us the mechanical clock. Two inventions in different parts of the world at different times that had nothing to do with each other...

[@ianhamilton7317]

I've been a fan of the series, but can't say I found George very persuasive. He would have to have been presented with quite a few (I think pretty obvious) pushbacks to address them satisfactorily, vs a number of unsubstantiated assertions he makes here.

[@civicblade1]

George Yeo wasn't trying to be persuasive. He gave his views on China from the perspective of a person of Chinese ethnicity who is from Singapore. What George Yeo is trying to do is to get the word out there that there are almost 8 billion people in the world and the western's persective of China isn't the only perspective and on the contrary the majority view of China (population wise) may be totally different from the western's view. You may think that the entire world hates China but the fact may well be quite different. You are likely raised in a society and environment that is based on Judeo-Christian tradition (you may disagree) and that trumpets that the western liberal democracy is the panacea for all the ills in the world and there is only one system that works (like there is only one God). George Yeo knows about the mindset of the west for he himself is a devout Catholic. He knows that no amount of persuasion can sway you from your upbringing. The irony is that there may be more brainwashing in the west that there are in China.

[@qingzhou9983]

@@civicblade1 You are right. It is very funny for someone who only knows the West way to question the wisdom of George, who knows both China and West very well, on China without any solid evidences.

[@vaultsjan]

​@@civicblade1 Uighurs,Tibetans, Taiwanese, Vietnamese,Filippinos all aprove, they are brainwashed and Chinese are not or are less so.

[@jam99]

Far away? Yes, before the internet. Yes, before oil. Not much said about global modern international trade was there? Not a word. There is nothing historic about China and Taiwan's current day global trade positions. That is very modern power. How can anyone compare the reunification of DDR and W Germany with the reunification of Taiwan with China from a financial and trade perspective of the two countries involved? Was DDR the 11th largest global goods exporter or making 60% of the world's technology building blocks (semiconductors) and 90% of the most advanced tech (highest tech semiconductors)? No. That technology is already firmly embedded in every facet of modern day culture and infrastructure in so many countries globally.

[@bobmorane4926]

@@jam99 You mean the principles go out the window if you're dealing with entities with different power status (bigger or biggest exporter or biggest tech producer or whatever) or with different asset valuation. Come on what happened to "Do the right thing ... Did it ever cross your mind "

[@georgnightingale2131]

A question to you both: Is there only Chinese unity in ethnicity, state, and culture? Are there beneath this other identities based on history, ethnicity, religion and e.g. former statehood other than Han Chinese?

[@hungryghost3260]

Good point! How strong is the People's Republic of China's (PRC's) claim on Taiwan, an island that Imperial China ceded to Japan, long before the PRC was even born? Doesn't the Republic of China, the legitimate and recognized government of China that escaped to Taiwan and NEVER surrendered to the Communist traitors, have a claim on their home, the Chinese mainland? Whose historical claim is stronger? Whose claim is more absurd? Why isn't Taiwan simply regarded as an independent nation, last freed from the Empire of Japan?

[@joythought]

Sterilization and re-education to achieve "harmony" come to mind

[@bradsims7089]

Tibet and Xinjiang might disagree with some of his points

[@edmundleung2098]

Chinese unity of this sort occurred only with CCP. The cultural revolution played a big part. The old timers will tell you, there were always a friend who died during those times. CCP hadn't changed much. Cultural genocide is still a thing, and it is getting worse as time progresses. Massive exodus of intellectuals from China at its peak. Taiwan is the only place where a decent side of Chinese cultural is retained.

[@deebil8099]

Even within their Han society, it's incredibly divided amongst social economic status. Chinese people living in Tier 1 cities like Shanghai consider rural Han Chinese people as peasant scum.

[@janitadubois1043]

Mr Yeo really knows what he is talking about. Hope more people watch this video. Thank you

[@buildmotosykletist1987]

Yeah, they'll see him sprouting CCP propaganda and know the threat that the CCP is to the free world.

[@David-x2c8l]

China only believes in self-benefits... the rest is a waste of time.

[@allisterlobo6754]

He says China doesn't want to play power broker in the Russia-Ukraine because they don't understand the conflict. Why did they play power broker between Saudi and Iran?

[@rap3208]

You are just looking for something to contradict when he just probably misworded what he wanted to say or just said that to make a long story short. Of course China understands what is happening in the Ukraine-Russia conflict. It wants to play mediator and it did try but Ukraine and Russia were not ready to go to the negotiation table. China does not impose itself where it does not belong. It dosn't interfere where it doesn't belong. It was succesful in the Iran-Saudi mediation because it was probably invited by the two parties to mediate it. Or it sent out a feeler to the two countries and they were receptive to a mediation. They almost always don't tell the complete story or what happens before, during and after a mediation, just the result.

[@bohtuanyap1138]

Oil

[@allisterlobo6754]

@@rap3208 if belonging is not mutual between both parties perhaps you are miswording yourself as well

[@rap3208]

@@allisterlobo6754 What are you talking about?

[@江宁路牛奶棚]

There is a big problem with your understanding ability. Is Iran and Saudi Arabia currently in a state of war? China is only helping them resume diplomatic relations, and both sides have this willingness.

[@sleo3720]

Just a wonderful & enlightening conversation George has a wealth of knowledge and wisdom which should help guide all leaders in today’s misguided world God bless George!

[@user-lp3uj3ge2i]

This went from what we got wrong about china to normalizing and justifying their aggressive and threatening attitude to democratic governments and continuing CCP lies. Chinese culture may be very old but the CCP is a government only in power less then 100 yrs and with no ties to the culture he speaks of. They in fact tried to eliminate all that culture he is speaking of and whatever they left was changed to follow party lines. This interview really brought what I thought was a good channel for real discussion to again another thing where CCP can continue their lies for doing whatever they feel like doing

[@civicblade1]

Care to point out what the lies are? I can also say that you are lying because you lie and your spout lies and that only lies are coming out of your mouth. Am I therefore correct to say that you are a liar and only thing you do is lie?

[@civicblade1]

George Yeo isn't from China. He is a citizen of Singapore. Not all people who look like East Asians are from China and not all people who look like East Asians are pro-Chinese government. George Yeo gave his views on China as someone who is independent of the government of China. Is this how you have a discussion? If you don't like what you hear, resort to labelling the person with different views as a liar. You are pathetic.

[@1ewi5]

I think you need to travel to China to see how their culture and language are being take care of, not just for the Han majority and also for the minorities. It's better for you to avoid falungong talking points unless you are one of them. Visitors of China won't be convinced by the lies you spread throughout the internet.

[@timetraveller885]

Bullshit

[@boat6771]

You are wrong about "CCP has no ties to the culture he speaks of", CCP can stand and lead the country just because it finds an unique way to manage the country, and manage it well. I am not saying CCP is perfect or democracy is not worthy of exercising in China. However when many people from democracy (free) world advocate CCP's invalidity by unfounded judgement and even lies, Chinese people instead of CCP starts to tease: what the good about democracy, are their political system and media just imposing values to people and taming stupid people who think they know everything? Therefore, with brainless criticism and hatred from the world these years, CCP's authority governance can be seen more valid by their own people - and who do you think to blame?

[@user_thelongwayaround]

As a Taiwanese, do Singaporeans really think china taking Taiwan by force is reasonable? Because my takeaway from this former diplomat is exactly this.

[@civicblade1]

Yes, China taking Taiwan by force is reasonable if Taiwan declares independence by changing its constitution. The fact is that Singapore's diplomatic relationship with China was established on the understanding between both countries that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China. Singapore sticks to its commitment to its relationship with China and this is the Singapore's government stand and it has been consistently since diplomatic relationships between China was established. As for Singaporeans, most young Singaporeans probably do not care. Older ethnic Chinese Singaporeans would be in favour of military actions if Taiwan declares independence.

[@samliew6610]

Please know that your government is just being used as a PAWN/proxy by the US to attack and contain China. There hane been so Mamy examples for all to see so don't be so gullible to trust their words. They lie most of the time.

[@annehersey9895]

@Lynette Agueda I am so excited to see what this crop of young people will do when they are in control. Ages 30 and younger don't remember a divided Europe or war and travel to all sorts of countries often on a regular basis so get to know different people and cultures and see we are all the same whereas the older generation rarely traveled and if they did it was usually to Europe. Yes, Lynette, you are right!

[@ailo8964]

The behaviour of Chinese Communist Party/People's Republic of China is neither predictable not reasonable, we can't apply rational thinking when it comes to China issues.

[@lymwan5634]

yes,they know the history of ROC they know the history of Taiwan

[@dominicchanwenshun]

Wow! HE George Yeo hit the right notes by comparing the Chinese and the Catholicism leadership. Spot on.

[@ruiferreira6578]

no. it was a bad comparation. It's only comparable to the middle ages in Europe when church tried to control everybody and every thing. Now the CRC stays out of politics, as it should

[@MarkHoover-dv7mf]

Except the catholic church has be far more progressive

[@yafeters]

I would've appreciated Alex pushing back on George on some topics. I'd argue that one of the biggest reason the Taiwanese people don't want to reunify with the PRC is because of how the government treats its people. George mentions that Western powers are using Taiwan as a cudgle against the PRC without considering what the Taiwanese people desire. What's more, I wonder what his view would be if the PRC sets its sights on Singapore with it's 75 % Han Chinese ethnic group. Would he have a more nuanced view on territorial expansion then?

[@chink-in-armor]

I suspect that, given that the aim was to hear a description of the official Han Chinese perceptions of Xina, "push back" would have backfired.

[@BBHABS]

As a Singaporean of Chinese root, I fully agreed with our former respected foreign minister's views. Taiwan cannot move herself away from being very near to China, Taiwan must learn to live harmoniously with China. As a tiny little red dot in the midst of SE Asia, we put it as our first priority to work well with our immediate neighbours. In 1992 there was an agreement of both China's and Taiwan's leaders to declare that there is Only One China, with leeway for each to interpret the details of the meaning of One China. This agreement brought good relation between China and Taiwan. Unfortunately, when the new political party took power in 2016 (till present), they do not support the 1992 agreement, and the relationship deteriorated down hill !

[@qingzhou9983]

@Yafet Desalegn You clearly missed his talk. George said very clearly people in Catalonia or Scotland do not get to decide their independence unilaterally. Same to Taiwan. Chinese in Mainland gets a Say, I will think a Decisive Say in this matter.

[@yafeters]

@@qingzhou9983 I'm not well versed on Spanish issues, however, there is a mechanism for Scottish independence. If the process was fulfilled, then there would be a manner for Scotland to become an independent country. It would be messy and take a while to complete because of how integrated Scotland is with the rest of the UK, but the decision would be respected. What's more, Taiwan is defacto independent. They have their own legal system, military, culture, politics, human rights and all other aspects that determine what makes an independent state. This should be respected by the PRC, but isn't, in my view.

[@qingzhou9983]

@@yafeters You still missed the key point. Scottish could not decide Scotland independence unilateral. Other people in UK has a Say in this. Do you get this Point? or Disagree with this Point?

[@zhixuanchen6914]

He had obvious vested interests as a former Singapore foreign affairs minister. Had no doubt what he said had good basis but there’s also obvious omission of other equally or even more important facts of what’s really ongoing now.

[@jasonazure]

I’m not following his comments about China not being expansionist. Where does Taiwan/South China sea figure in this? Tibet? Aksai Chin? The recent Galwan river valley skirmishes with India? The push for Arunachal Pradesh? “Salami slicing”? Not looking to be a troll but I truly want to know where he’s coming from. What am I missing?

[@silashuang615]

Great to see that George Yeo was invited to share his views and thoughts. Yet, a major pity that Alex accepted his assertions as is, without the slightest challenge, resulting in a simplistic one-sided view without any robust arguements to support it. A pity, considering its George Yeo, who has such a wealth of knowledge and experience about China as a third party. I was looking forward to a more robust exhange. A quick look through the comments page showed I wasnt the only one feeling disappointed.

[@yafeters]

My thoughts exactly. A bit of a wasted opportunity in my opinion.

[@davidkoh7097]

George Yeo and his ilk are shills for the CCP.

[@toothpick5932]

I agree with you completely. In history China conquered other countries like vietnam. So I do not agree with Yeo . He is Chinese so he is biased

[@fajarliong]

Amazing, so many guys so much cleverer and much more knowledge-able than George Yeo. World is so peaceful with so many extremely knowledgeable people 😯

[@rap3208]

@@toothpick5932 lol! you are so desperate that you have to pull out an example from ancient history before the birth of Jesus Christ, lol again. Perhaps you can't make the chinese invasion of vietnam territory in 1979 in support of their ally Cambodia because they voluntarily withdrew after less than 3 weeks?

[@luciannaguo9230]

I was born in China and raised in Australia. I think it’s so rare to see a video in social media that is actually not bias and actually explain the situation correctly to the public. It is sad to see how the mainstream media picturing China as a villain where the actual threat is not China. China never started any war, and forced people out of their homes and become refugees of the world. It is fascinating to see how the media can turn everything around. Of course, China has a lot of problems, but mostly they are trying to contain this internally. I think being so much hate is not wise, especially how the world is now at its worst financial situations and so many ppl are suffering. Hating China is not going to make our lives better. Everyone need to work together to get through it.

[@Lotusflower888]

Agree 💯👍

[@danieljones6778]

They invaded Vietnam

[@sinistersilverado965]

all lies and Chinese propaganda

[@vvjp5732]

George Yeo's views on China's non expansionist polity is in direct contrast with their actions in South China Sea. Let's not forget China said it had no interest in South China Sea and went on to build airfields, military outposts etc in the next few years in an attempt at legitimising their alleged hold on SCS.

[@mahalnamahalkita358]

I was thinking this too.

[@davidkoh7097]

George Yeo, Singaporean apparatchik, talking out both sides of his mouth. Pretty sure he and others of his ilk would be singing a different tune if, say, Malaysia starst insisting they have the right to take back Singapore because of historical reasons (the Malays being the original inhabitants of the island of Singapore).

[@sart3735]

Malays sold SG to British East India Company. They did not take SG by force. Malaysia and SG separation is official which both parties agreed. Malaysia has no right to say SG is still part of Malaysia or belongs to Malays. Are you from the jungle David Koh?

[@anniewong1387]

or how LKY get rid of the communists in Spore, LKY didnt think that they are harmless or good for Spore, that was not that long ago, george yeo shld know the spore history of how LKY deal w the communist

[@fitrisepviyantisumardi9544]

China is China; U.S is U.S China will be modern in their way They will keep their word, culture and philosophy Thank you for this great lecture

[@nealaoki7267]

"Keep their word?" Ask the people of Hong Kong and the British, if China kept their word," on how Hong Kong will be governed.

[@Chancellor-g9b]

Why should china keep it words to UK, the one who took Hong Kong by force during opium war or is just right to be colonised by western ​@@nealaoki7267

[@ernestmwape]

"For China, Taiwan is a matter of historical justice" - it is for the same reason that Spain cannot allow Catalonia to secede. Great observation indeed 😂😂❤

[@hjc7429]

Or how the US couldn't let the confederate south secede.

[@mosca3289]

Great conversation.

[@Dermisc]

His understanding of China is somewhat outdated, but it is still a lot better than most Western policy makers. In his discussion of China's cultural and philosophical underpinnings, he understates the degree to which the regime has influenced cultural values and how traditional Chinese philosophy has, in return, restructured the regime's understanding of its own ideology. The PRC has been and continues to be shockingly candid and insightful about itself. There is no doubt in my mind that they represent the great majority of Chinese people, despite how lacking or un-democratic their electoral system might be.

[@reubenkhj4296]

cultural values = confucianism beliefs. That has been a Chinese universal beliefs regardless of your religion. It has never been outdated. Sure, we may disagree with their political system but at least the art of war has been maintained and uphold. China historically even till today do send their officials to Singapore to study governance and the art of policies making.

[@Dermisc]

@reubenkhj4296 There is far more to Chinese culture and philosophy than Confucianism. While the roots of those values and philosophies generally trace back to 500-200 BCE, and while they generally follow the same themes, they are far from static. Confucianism, for example, meant different things at different points in history. What we have seen in the past decades in China is a revitalization of those founding values of Chinese culture and a resurgence of philosophical debate and dialogue, the likes of which haven't been seen in centuries. What the PRC regime has accomplished is an alignment of political ideology with cultural values and philosophies. Over the course of a century, historical trends and events have pried China away from its previously sedentary and outdated framework of governance. The result, however, is not the abandonment of traditional values and philosophies, but rather their revitalization. In more recent decades, through much struggle and suffering, the persistence of said values and philosophies have selected, molded, and adapted the regime's understanding of its own ideology and style of governance. The folly of likening China to the late USSR is that China's "socialism with Chinese characteristics" is more about Chinese than it is about socialism, just as the USSR was more about Russia than it was about socialism. China doesn't give a shit whether you want to become just like China. China is only concerned with how China is to be managed and directed towards a brighter future for its people and itself. China has never become strong by vanquishing its foes. Rather, China vanquished its foes by virtue of its strength. What western policy makers need to realize is that China isn't out to get you, so don't make yourself its mortal enemy. China has been a superpower for most of its existence, and there is no way that it wouldn't relapse into being a superpower again. Except this superpower of 1.4 billion people and 29% of world industrial output is perfectly happy to just be left alone. The gentle giant has even shrugged it off when you poked it with twigs. Don't keep challenging its core national interests and sovereign integrity. Keep doing that, and it might just get angry at you. You don't want that to happen.

[@liangqiang1133]

@@Dermisc Why do you know China so well?

[@rap3208]

Didn't you listen to what he said? Except for a brief period when China established the "Republic of China" (partly democratic in 1912 to 1949 when KMT was governement) all the rest of history has China being ruled by an authoritarian government. Authoritarian rule is all they know in their 5,000 year of history. They are used to authoritarian rule, they like authoritarian rule. The people are willing to give up some of their rights/freedom (mostly political freedom) in exchange of a government that will take care of them and provide them with security, protection, homes, so they can have a good living. You ask them if they want to be able to vote and they would say "Why?". It would mean them having to invest their time and learning all the issues to be able to be an intelligent voter. They'll just say, "leave that to the party members who are committed and know what its all about. They are more interested in making money for themselves.

[@Dermisc]

@rap3208 First of all, the Republic of China from 1912 to 1949 was not a democracy. Secondly, Chinese people do get to vote. I personally witnessed their voting process while I was working in China, much to my surprise. Sure, their system is rigged elsewhere to make sure their dominant political party stays in control, but China does have other political parties, and some of those representatives do get elected at times. Lastly, to claim that any nation or people is grossly uninterested in the governance of their society is simply bigotry. Yes, Chinese people have a lot of faith in their government, but so do Canadians and Americans. It's not an isolated incident that you'd come across Canadians and Americans claiming that someone in their government must have done the research and made intelligent and informed decisions on any given subject matter. For example, let's start with why we must make China our number 1 enemy. All you'd get is regurgitation of official policy. Nobody can give you an answer when you keep digging with more why's. Everything about China is blown way out of proportion here, but the average person doesn't seem interested in questioning the direction of our foreign policy. Does that mean that Canadians and Americans don't care for democracy? Oh, and on money... Who on earth doesn't want to make more money? I'm not a billionaire. I want more money.

[@jowhitehead650]

I enjoy listening to George Yeo's views - it provides a perspective that isn't very often aired in Europe. However, I thought that Alex didn't explore some interesting issues. If China doesn't want to rule non-Han peoples - why has it colonized Tibet (and other minority areas in the West). Is this not a sign that China wants to at least secure its border lands and where does this border end? The South China Sea? The countries surrounding the South China Sea? African resources? There appears to be a contradiction here that needs discussion and I would have liked to hear George's viewpoint. Similarly, the reunification of Germany was done with the acceptance of both of the German peoples. That was the "Western" basis for justifying the reunification. How do we weigh this Western idea that the people's will is important versus other arguments. What is the basis for the Chinese demand for reunification? I understand about the Cairo Declaration - but I don't think this is the only idea driving China's justification for unification. Similarly, is there not a different justification for splitting up a country (e.g., Spain, the UK, Belgium) than forcing two countries together? I would like to have had these ideas explored as, if we don't understand them, we don't really have a deep enough understanding of the potential conflicts we face. I am sure George has some important, well informed and thoughtful views - so I was disappointed not to hear them. Still, an interesting video.

[@tanjolley4816]

The comparison of Taiwan and Catalonia or Scotland is different. Referedum on Scotland and Catalonia for independence had been allowed but not Taiwan.

[@NicolasSauveur]

Much needed insight on China to help the west understand it better. And avoid the catastrophic consequences of misunderstanding and fear on the geopolitical stage. Thank you !

[@alsetalokin88]

it is not misunderstanding. it is toxic hate and jealousy

[@Lost_Johnny]

@@alsetalokin88 you are the one filled with toxic hate, etc, evidently

[@alsetalokin88]

@@Lost_Johnny you're making no sense and in denial

[@alsetalokin88]

@@Lost_Johnny stop consuming the toxic hateful lying western media right away. there is still hope.

[@TheGoldenDonuttt]

The West's behaviour clearly shows they don't care for insight and understanding. They want what they want and if they don't get it. You're the problem not them.

[@oneiros3897]

Look, I understand the value of hearing alternative viewpoints. In fact, there's a lot of wisdom in some of the points he makes, especially regarding how the West understands China and how China views itself and its history. However, that sentiment needs to be put into practice by China as well. They also need to understand how the rest of the world will view their hundreds of sorties over Taiwan, their predatory loans, theft of intellectual property, etc. China isn't absolved of aggressive behavior simply because it has its own view of certain situations. Putin thinks Ukraine is a made up country. That doesn't make it true. If you're going to be the outlier in terms of how you view a situation, you need to have a very strong argument to back it up, and China simply doesn't in most cases. I also find it intellectually dishonest to compare unifying China and Taiwan to German reunification. It shows a wilful misinterpretation of history which is a tactic China uses often. It's impossible to make progress in a disagreement if both sides cannot agree on the parameters of the discussion or if one side is wilfully misrepresenting the situation in order to gain an advantage.

[@philipwoodgate9555]

Alex is making the same mistakes here as he did many years ago with Putin. No one ever says what can China do to avoid war. It is China that is trying to steal the SCS from it's neighbors and destroying the world order that has kept the peace for decades, it is China that is threatening to kill Taiwanese if they do not give up their freedom. It is China that has set about a campaign to commit genocide.

[@civicblade1]

The USA and the current ruling party in Taiwan wilfully misrepresenting the situation is unagreeable to both of us. I wholeheartedly agrees with you on your last sentence. China has a very strong case, the strongest case possible of asserting sovereignty over a jurisdiction so strong that all nations on Earth except for 12 accepts that Taiwan is part of China. If China's case is a weak one or even a fradulent one, why does over 160 countries recognizes and accepts China's claim that Taiwan is part of China and there is only one China? Is China pointing guns at the heads of 160+ countries to force them to recognize Taiwan as part of China since 1971 (remember that in 1971, China's GDP is only about half of France)?

[@hotbodtz]

Singapore plays both side. Their rewards.. wealth and security.

[@AllisGoodThankGoodness]

小心两边都不是人！

[@ssss8162]

@@AllisGoodThankGoodness Never place all your eggs in one basket.

[@barryooi9474]

Fascinating conversation. George’s explaination on China by George from a very different perspective

[@Andy-P]

Different from an American perspective - yes I would agree.

[@taiwanlife6531]

He's preaching the Chinese propaganda, that's all.

[@barryooi9474]

This remark also applies to all parties. Everyone is preaching their own gospel but not many are actually interested to listen and learn about their differences

[@maxmadison5488]

@@taiwanlife6531 ... Says the CIA bot. Stop making sh->yyit up.

[@一个说话大声的中国人]

Because the West loves China too much. Westerners love China so much, all Westerners have become Jesus, willing to die to bring democracy, justice, happiness, human rights, etc. to Chinese people. So, it has nothing to do with whether we are right or wrong about China.

[@RosieBaseball]

@19:34 "We support the German unification. We hope Germany will support Chinese unification..." Herein lies the problem. China and Taiwan can unify as long as it becomes one democratic country like Germany. I highly doubt that the unification of Germany would have happened if the end result was an autocratic country. I'm very disappointed that the guest speaker got emotional over such nonsense and is so blinded by taking his own democratic values for granted.

[@davidgunther8428]

The video title is what do westerners get wrong about China, but I've heard most of the points he covers before. Some new insight, but I was hoping for more. I suppose there is more if you compare what he says the aspirations are to what has historically happened.

[@cathy9183]

Why didn’t you remind him that Scotland citizens voted to stay part of England…. George is a good mouthpiece for China. He have me until, “China is not expansionist.”

[@ritchienethanani]

Can you name one Chinese colony in history

[@davidturnbull310]

Tibet, Xinjiang, inner Mongolia.😂

[@Ufthak]

@@ritchienethananieverything except the Yellow River valley. All the other natives were wiped out or forcibly assimilated to the point where 92% of the country is Han Chinese. There are some remnants in remote mountainous areas of indigenous population like Miao, Yi, etc. Has it never struck you how a massive country like this can be so ethnically homogeneous?

[@江宁路牛奶棚]

@@davidturnbull310 If we follow your logic, there is no country in this world that is not a colonial country. The largest one is in the United States.

[@davidturnbull310]

@@江宁路牛奶棚 logic😂🤣stupidity of how to bankrupt each other. Wishes and hopes are dreams.😂🤣

[@frankgrafe9871]

"China über alles. Über alles in der Welt" ... Well, thanks but No. We know where the end looks like. Greetz from Germany

[@wamingo]

"Nationalism is a disease" - famous German physicist.

[@level1selamat155]

Unlike Germany.. Chinese don't claim uber alles in der world...no such thing.. it's the States!

[@frankgrafe9871]

@@level1selamat155 of course they claim kinda world dominance based their long history of chinese civilization. Especially in the asia-pacific region, especially in front of their asian neighbors… the US- presences in this region is because of the safety of the tradeways per sea

[@R-Cforeverfriends]

Yellow peril discourse came from Germany. As did hitler and final solution. People don;t think "uber alles" like you. I think that's your history, not other people's history

[@Lost_Johnny]

The usual brainless Nazi tropes from a racist.

[@junhuazhang7803]

The very first question is already problematic. Why don't you ask "What does Xi Jinping's China get wrong about the West or about its neighbours or about the world?" That Mr. Stubb raised such a question is a sign of being lack of confidence in himself. A typical European problem: Neither do they know themselves nor China well. As to Singapore, like many Southeastasian countries, they need American support in regional security, but then again, in terms of business, China is the biggest attraction. However, for the US it is clear that if you need me to provide regional security, then logically I have to contain China, at least in terms of its military expansion. The problem is Southeast countries are in a contradictionary constellation. Asians cannot solve the problems by themselves peacefully. By the way, the time of using history, cultural background to explain Xi Jinping's policy is already over. Mr. Yeo has mistaken himself greatly. He simply does not make such an important differentiation between the Chinese people and CCP. I am wondering how can he talk about the China's politics without talking about the nature of the CCP and without mentioning different governance style of the leaders. To put "Chinese people" equal to the Chinese leader is totally wrong. - Prof. Junhua Zhang

[@bboystretch7788]

The US should look after its own people first and solve the plethora of problems back home before wasting trillions on another senseless war. Start by rooting out the corruption from the top and get rid of the the powerful MIC lobbyists.

[@2945antonio]

Want to understand China? Think of the Catholic Church! Actually, the most illuminating advice I heard in a long time. It was a pleasure to listen to this interview. Thank you.

[@andywong9847]

Indirectly George Yeo confirmed my earlier understanding and believe that Catholic Church is a political entity. It probably was never a religious entity right from the beginning.

[@barkobummer]

Wanna to understand Amarika? Think of Epstein and Irak.

[@markiobook8639]

Completely incorrect erroneous and simplistic understanding of the Catholic Church. False similarity. Catholic Church never murders.

[@barkobummer]

@@markiobook8639 sure, RC priests sure brings a whole new meaning to loving them altar boys. LOL

[@kevinkwong4417]

​​@@markiobook8639have your ever heard of burning at the stake? The church also had its dark history of killing heretics in the past.

[@billyclifton5710]

Jumping from the 1911 revolution to 1979 skips so much important history

[@Qiushishuo]

One century of humiliation history from west should be important as well.

[@FragLord]

@@Qiushishuo It was much less then a century and get fucking over it. 2 world wars happened since and all the people involved in both those wars get along well now. Germany and France are actually allies... Why do all China's neighbors hate China? Because of the west? Why are Vietnam, the Philippines, India, Burma and even Mongolia so anti Chinese? Because of the selfish actions of the Chinese, not the west. Funny that the US has much better relations with Vietnam compared to China considering they had the most recent war with them. How many centuries will you keep on humiliation Tibet and the Uygur people?

[@yahqobtay7453]

I am a second generation overseas Chinese, but I am first a human being and secondly I am a Chinese descent. Let's not be racial and be peacemakers. Certainly, the west has ravaged the east and colonized them in the past and even now they are colonizing them economically. This does not mean the east is holier than the west. China is a new country. The People Republic of China was birthed on 1st October, 1949. Prior to it, was Republic of China in 1912 (10th October). Before there was no China, it was the Great Qing Empire. In the 15th Century it was the Ming not Chinese. Then in 18th century, it was the Qing. Let's use a general term, the Hans. The Hans was the majority of the population. the Qing was the Manchus that ruled the Hans. In the 15th Century the Hans were trading with many locations (not a country at that time) and the Hans never conquered them is because cannon and gun wasn't available yet. Today, China has the modern weaponaries. Let's see 100 years from now. The past dynasties they do colonized their neighbors. It colonized Taiwan for 212 years, Tibet, Sinkiang, the South autonomous region. This proves that we the Hans are not Holier. We are all guilty of colonization. Let's make peace and let righteousness rule.

[@joeblack4436]

I have to question the point of China's cultural homogeneity. China wasn't nearly so homogeneous originally. Certainly not the territories it on and off controlled through conquest on its fringes. Much of the territory we know as China today was originally made up of quite culturally disparate groups. The cultural revolution was a sugar coated name for a genocide. And was perpetrated by a revolutionary force indoctrinated by and operating on a foreign philosophical doctrine. That of the Soviets , which provided guidance, with some local flavour. A regime came about that even banned traditional Chinese art. After WW2! Practically yesterday. Really... I don't have much confidence in an opinion that the current regime is reflective, culturally, of the dynasties that came before it. The Han didn't even have the upper hand through all China's history. Though of course... It seems things are fairly homogenous now after the cultural revolution. Which really is continuing when you consider the treatment of the Uighurs. But they are not the only minority being systematically wiped under the rug so to speak. And expressing victimhood with regards to Taiwan is disingenuous. China's real history with the island started during the era of European colonialism. Certainly in 1349 the Chinese explorer Wang Dayuan, for which the island is now named, found no Chinese settlers there. Only the aboriginal peoples of the island. This a mere 100 years before Columbus discovered the Americas in its pre colonial form. Around 1602 Chen Di on an expedition hunting pirates likewise found aboriginals and Japanese pirates. Counting the people living there among the "Eastern barbarians". This a mere 20 or so years before Dutch and Spanish colonies were established on the island. Ironically the first big settlement of Chinese peoples on the Island was conducted by the VOC. The Qing Dynasty did supplant the Europeans for control however, but we're talking about very recent history in relation to the History of the Chinese dynasties. And then initially the Qing forbade more mainlanders from migrating to the island and even moved many of the Chinese settlers up to that time from the VOC occupation back to the mainland until only 50 000 people remained living on the island. Of which a sad 8000 were the aboriginal inhabitants. Why? Because traditionally it was seen as improper that Chinese peoples would live away from the mainland. Though the floodgates were open and Taiwan was just too remote for the Qing to really put much effort into it. So gradually the Chinese population entirely dominated the land. It is after all a lovely and pleasant land. The floodgates were open. But remember. This at exactly the same time as European colonialism, which China considers to be atrocity, took place. And it is no different. The current state of division is from the communist revolution when the remnants of the Last dynasty fled to the island. China isn't the victim here. The aboriginal inhabitants of Taiwan are the true victims. As much as any other aboriginal population anywhere in the world which was displaced or entirely eradicated during that age of colonialism. In which China participated. Experiencing expansionary successes and setbacks like all the other empires involved. What is the victimhood that China claims in the matter between the communist post-dynastic and post cultural revolution China of today and Taiwan? That's what I want to know. I hear "Historical injustice inflicted upon a grand imperial tradition", but I read "new nation embarrassment regarding recent events". China claims it has the right to Taiwan based on some agreements with Western nations. Isn't that a bit selectively picking and choosing what they like or do not like about colonialism? What right did the UK or the US have to sign over Taiwan to China? Hmm? The situation that arose from the Chinese civil war before Japanese occupation is way more relevant. Taiwan has existed as it is now for 70 years. As long as the People's Republic of China.

[@jbmia.]

Well said.

[@mariavm9178]

I usually enjoy Prof. Stubb's interviews....this one was a poor one. China PR is what this was.

[@dancerinmaya6813]

Excellent interview! I have great respect for Mr. Yeo, he, like many other Singaporean leaders, has penetrative insight and pragmatic wisdom. With all due respect, may I point out one minor misunderstanding about Chinese revolution: the genuine female equality: women's education, equal employment and equal pay, bound feet ban, arranged marriage ban and equal rights to community property, child custody, the right to inherit, and etc., were all done after 1949, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. The revolution in 1911 only had certain ideals, but no implementations. I remember one of my relatives talking about 1949, small working groups of the local gov and the PLA would get to the rural areas helping women to release the binding of their feet, ban parents from binding the feet of young children (it must be done seven eight years old, otherwise the bones get too hard), organizing women to learn to read to become literate, to support young women to marry b/c of love (escaping arranged marriage etc.)... It's the CPC.

[@kinddragon313]

And land reform!

[@MJR67]

Many thanks Alex for posting. A couple of observations. The first is that the treaties re Taiwan which were signed post WW2 were signed with the KMT and not the PRC. I am therefore not sure how these would stand in a court of law today. I am therefore not certain one can use the argument of the PRC having a “right” towards these island esp if the current inhabitants do not wish to be united with the PRC. The point Mr Yeo makes re German unification and China not objecting is also a bit tangential. East Germans wished to be reunited with the West Germans. Not sure the same can be said for Taiwan. I am also not so sure about Mr Yeo’s framing of the Taiwan issue. If we assume the post war treaties hold but the Taiwanese refuse to be “reunited”. Does their voice not count as a treaty had been signed some 80 plus years ago. Furthermore, if this leads to a PRC invasion and a subjugation of the Taiwanese, it is fine because of said treaties. Finally, I am not so sure about the argument that China is not an expansionist power and does not wish to involved itself with other cultures. Hard to see how the issue of Tibet fits into this picture . Tibet hardly being an aggressive county of culture, or the Sino-Vietnamese war of 1979.

[@LeeSuKwang-ol5oy]

That's why George Yeo emphasis on history. You know history but you do not understand history. Its the Mongols that took Tibet and China as the yuan dynasty. They all became one China in subsequent dynasty.

[@MJR67]

@@LeeSuKwang-ol5oy Many thanks for your reply. The issue with history is that whose history does one take. The victors history or the losers history or worse still the later revisionist history. Furthermore, how far back does one want to go, the issue here is much of the ancient history wasn’t even written down so hearsay or subsequent embellishments are sold as history. Furthermore, as we well know history can easily be manipulated by the powers that be to their own advantage. The risk I see-and i may be completely wrong- is that given the fluidity of things in the past, any state which was bellicose enough can use history to justify almost anything. Just think of the UK, at some point they ruled 50% of the world (i am not a Brit BTW) , now they barely rule themselves. However, if they are allowed to use history as a shield, we’ll they’d be able to lay claim to much of the world. So yes, it is important to know and understand history but I am not sure I would like history to be used as an excuse to subjugate people who don’t wish to be subjugated.

[@everythingandmore5537]

​@@MJR67 What a laugh at minute 13. Xi trying to root out corruption? Xi wants to destroy any opposition to him. He is getting rid of opposition leaders by charging them on corruption. GY is a laugh. A westerner moderator does not how to question GY.

[@civicblade1]

Most territorial issues are not arbitrated in international court of law system. Most territorial issues are decided through bilateral negotiations and it is a myth that sovereign countries are governed by "law" like a citizen of a country is. No country is governed by external law.. even the International Laws such as International Laws of the Seas is just a convention that countries choose to ratify meaning they try to abide by the rules but there are no punishment for not doing so.

[@everythingandmore5537]

@@civicblade1 What would be the position of ethnic Chinese diaspora like GY in ASEAN if China invades Taiwan. This Question should be asked of GY. Is he a spy for the CCP?

[@CanDoSo_org]

23:20 Xi would never do that. Even Xi would, Putin would not hear Xi. Xi has no such powerful influence on Putin.

[@mortmortannon6640]

As a German with a taiwanese partner, this is infuriating to listen to. To have the audacity to compare german reunification with the taiwanese situation is appaling. Go ask any taiwanese person what they want. This is not a „frank conversation“, these are CCP propaganda lines. Where is the discussion here?

[@banarama4144]

Being married to a Taiwanese does not make u the custodian of their history or future.

[@mortmortannon6640]

@@banarama4144 True and that is not what i am claiming. But i have experienced german unification, which was desired by huge majority on both parts of the country. The situation in Taiwan is very different (what is the approval for unification, 2% or 3%?). So suggesting this is comparable in order to build a sort of moral framework for coercion or military action is quite repulsive to me personally. The speaker might rightfully point to the fact that a lot of Westerners just see Taiwan as a chip in the game but by ignoring the desires of its people he is doing no better.

[@thlim1460]

How would US feel if Hawaii suddenly had plans to be independent and China supported them? There’re so many similar situations in Europe too and if China supported them is Europe ok with that? 😊

[@Julia-Richter]

Actually there is no situation in Europe that is similar, as there is not a single dictatorship in Europe.

[@FragLord]

Euhm Taiwan is independent because you had a civil war... There are no civil wars in Europe atm. And also US states actually have the power to leave the union. But not one state is ever dumb enough to do it, because it's the unity that gives them more leverage and power. Also Hawaii is not ruled by an entirely political entity with a totally different economical and political system... There are no similar situations in Europe. Also what about Tibet?

[@eduardoboldtq.9931]

👏👏👏 bravo for Mr Yeo

[@robhaythorne4464]

As Kipling observed, "The West is the West and the East is the East, and never the twain shall meet."

[@wowomah6194]

Yes but Kipling was also talking about an entirely different century. We now live in 2023, where Taiwan, South Korea and Japan, for example, have far more in common politically and the values they hold with the West compared to say, the CCP's prison state of mainland China.

[@markiobook8639]

No- Chinese opium smugglers meet in the middle to smuggle opium in to the internal areas Westerners could not venture (outside of Concession on pain of death)

[@dunzhen]

@@wowomah6194 China will always be more "authoritarian" than Western countries due to geography, population, and culture. That doesn't mean it's lesser. When there is no order in China many millions perish. This doesn't mean their system is lesser. The overwhelming majority of Chinese in China support their government. Why do you feel as if you know better than them? I feel your superiority complexes lead you to self righteously point fingers. You always try and occupy some fake moral highground. Western countries are the most evil in the planet, get that through your thick head. Just can't accept we're the baddies.

[@MeiinUK]

He is a busy body. And the kind of information that was translated... those individuals never actually even actually... had a say... Whatever his title...it is not recognised by his people or inside China. So what does it matter either way ? Cos by "respecting" is often seen as actually "participating". Today.. The "PRC"... is a US-made issue... And even now. I am seeing lecture materials.. which states that..."China never had any royalty or a desire for a monarchy-led country"... Er... So who are these so called "Red second generation" ???.... Some of the so called "communists" were not even actually "rural people" or as in Mao's case.. he was the child of an actual Lord... (comparable to the UK's version)... So when some people got certain amount of money.. i.e. RMB... and yet.. others. That is, other trading cities and areas or regions. They got the silver yuan. (What the country did was tried to unify both.) But in Europe.. everybody has a title... Their titles relates to their blood relationship to the Royal. So where is this, inside the PRC today????

[@noma5050]

Question: 1)Tibet was not part of China, but China took it. 2) China told Hong Kong that it could keep its form of government after it returned to China, but changed its mind in 2020. 3) China is currently creating islands in the south China sea, and using them to take large fishing areas away from other countries that have had use of them for many years. How does this trend reconcile with the claim that China is not expansionist? I don't understand how both can be true. Educate me, please.

[@jameschu4331]

Please go back to history, Tibet was part of China during the Dynasty period. Known history well will save your argument.

[@civicblade1]

2) China allowed Hong Kong high degree of automony and this is enshrined in the Basic Law of Hong Kong. What China did in 2020 was to enact National Security Law within the Basic Law and used a clause in the Basic Law to do this outside of Hong Kong's legislature. The Basic Law states that Hong Kong must enact National Security Law although no time frame was stipulated. It is however in the spirit of the Basic Law and Hong Kong being part of China that a National Security Law should be enacted quickly or at least within reasonable time frame after handover in 1997. However, no legislative council was able to pass any National Security Law 23 years ago handover due to obstruction from pro-democractic opposition parties. Within the Basic Law, in the event of serious national security and Hong Kong's stability concerns, the national council of the People's Republic of China can enact and insert National Security Laws into the Basic Law without going through Hong Kong's legislative chamber. In light of the serious and violent riots that took place in 2019, China decided to enact the National Security Law on behalf of Hong Kong. This was done in accordance to the Basic Law and this is the only legislative change that was made to Hong Kong due to the violent riots. Your assertion that China "changed its mind" on Hong Kong's autonomy was at best misguided or at worst utter nonsense. Hong Kong is part of China and what China does in Hong Kong (so far all legal within the Basic Law) is part of China's internal affairs and are not expansionist. 3) China claims that all islands within the 9 dashed lines are part of China's territory and that China treats them as Chinese territory. So to the Chinese, building anything on their own territority is within their own right to do so. It is akin to you saying that the US is not allowed to build a military base in Fort Worth, Texas. You are now well educated.

[@江宁路牛奶棚]

I don't know which country you are from. If there is a threat to national security in your city, will your government legislate to prevent such incidents from happening? Hong Kong should have legislated on its own in 1997, which was included in the Basic Law. Due to opposition from the opposition parties in Hong Kong, Hong Kong did not complete it until 2020. If you want to say who broke the agreement first, it must be Hong Kong itself. In 2020, Beijing helped Hong Kong establish a national security law, while the US CIA withdrew from Hong Kong and ran faster than dogs.

[@georgewong6615]

You better worry country instead China

[@noma5050]

@@georgewong6615 How helpful of you. I ask for help, you make threats.

[@derrickchu8201]

Chinese women mostly liberated not because of 1911, but because of 1949

[@eddybell2661]

Despite the serious subject, I realize this is just two friends "shooting the breeze" given the number of dubious claims George Yeo's makes which are not questioned by the host. Instead of having an ethnic Chinese talk about China and say "The Chinese people are not expansionist" @5:48 maybe the people of Xinjiang and Tibet should be asked whether they think the Chinese are expansionistic. For my part, how a country with 300 different languages achieved this without being expansionistic is a mystery to me. Also, Mr. Yeo should probably read another history of China, one written by someone other than Chinese. I saw a non Chinese Historian of China politely but firmly point out to a Chinese Political Expert that China's relationship with Taiwan was relatively brief - about 200 years and not the 1000s most Chinese believe. The Chinese analyst went apoplectic with indignation and cited some ancient historical text which, it turned out, merely noted the existence of an Island that might have been Taiwan. When we look at what we have already decided even our own beliefs will count as confirmation, as Nietzsche said, we cannot see ourselves, we are standing in the way. It has become clear to me that for Chinese the situation with Taiwan is not about historical facts but rather about identity, indeed as Yeo puts it, "for China its a matter of historical justice" @18:12. Does that mean personal injury or some more general grievance and so that must be avenged? One sees this with the seven-dash line in the South China Sea, lines that have no basis in historical fact - or legal for that matter. Of course these claims could be mere greed, given the possibility of minerals deposits, but for some it is driven by a desire for redressing an identity that harbors historical grievances. This is not just a Chinese failing. The world's history is full of injury, some of it even real - consider the Kurds, the native Americans etc - while China may have grown old it has done so without its government having grown up, like a small boy who believes his heroic imagination should be part of the real nation. Russian claim to Crimea also has historical roots, some Russians believe it goes back to Crimea's ancient Greek settlements! This is utter fantasy and more about Russia's need to ground an identity in Europe - and what better ancestors than the heroic Greeks - a continent to which Russians feels an injury as they imagines it neither respects nor accepts them. Here too "all the victorious powers" @18:35 that go along with China's claims on Taiwan, or Russia's claim to Crimea, do so either out of ignorance of history or indifference to it. Sadly, it is still true of our world today that "The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must," as wrote the Greek Historian Thucydides over 2400 years ago, I found it revealing when Yeo says @18:50, regarding Taiwan, that "China cannot give up the possibility of the use of force anymore than Madrid can allow Catalonia to declare unilateral independence, or London agreeing to Scotland declaring unilateral independence." As to Catalonia leaving Spain, if it were an economic basket case like Southern Italy, from which the wealthy North Italy would like a divorce, then maybe Madrid would also be happy to give it independence. However, since Catalonia is the economic powerhouse that pours millions into Madrid's coffers, Madrid cannot afford to let it go. Of course for Spain, given its sadly all too recent fascist past, democracy is still a work in progress. However, Yeo clearly did not understand the meaning of Scotland's 2014 independence election. Had Scots voted for independence it would not have led to a unilateral declaration but a bilateral declaration of independence, simply because London would have accepted the outcome since it had given its permission of the vote. Of course Singapore's leaders own dealings with democracy wouldn't help him understand that the Scottish demos were trusted to decided what was best for them. Consequently, Yeo is unable to understand that moral right in democracies comes from the demos not from unelected leaders. Given this lack of understanding of Europe and its democratic institutions, Yeo is in no place to make moral comparison between German unification, that had some input from the German people, and China's claims on Taiwan where the only people who have an input are the member of the People's Liberation Army. Of course in China the demos are fed a diet of state controlled propaganda which makes an informed democracy impossible - and those who thought democracy possible, by demonstrating their views, were given Peace at the Heavenly Gates under the "caterpillar" tracks of the tanks of the People's Liberation Army. Mr. Yeo makes a statement @19:03 that "its not your preference because you're the same people." I think he is saying that Scots and English are the same people. He also applies this view to Catalonian and Castilians (the people of Castile region which includes Madrid) seeing then as the same people though they speaks different languages and for much of their history were different Kingdoms. From this he seems to concludes that independence is not a choice available to them, or preferance as he call it. Does he really think these people believe they are the same people? Alex Stubb should have stepped in here as I doubt he thinks the indigenous Sami people of Finland consider themselves the same as Finns just because they are bound within one Nation. What about Russians and Ukrainians? Of course we know what Chinese really thinks about this, China's ambassador to France, Lu Shaye, told us, despite his muddled understanding of their history, so we can ignore Beijing denials as mere damage control. So this is my complaint: If Mr. Yeo sees all the people of Spain as the same, and similarly the Great Britain, can we trust his claims 92% of Chinese people are the same merely because they are Han? To say China has a united polity sounds like some one who hasn't lived in China. I might not be far from wrong to say 92% of Europeans are Caucasian but that doesn't make them the same - most Ukrainians and Russian are Slavic but are we to conclude they are the same? Just in case Mr. Yeo isn't sure, Ukrainians certainly do not think they are the same as Russians despite what Mr. Putin says. I would like to illustrate what I think is Yeo's way of thinking with an example I once experience in an elevator when I was in Shenzhen, China. I was staying at an expensive hotel - not on my buck - with of all things a lift operator, a lad of about 18. A well dressed Chinese woman in her 20s gets on the elevator and the operator gets us on our way. Then, in Mandarin, he starts speaking to her but she ignores him. So he switches to Cantonese which finally gets a response - "I don't speak Chinese" she says in flawless American - a which English is a dialect as they say in China of all their languages. The Lift Operator unfazed asks her in English - I did say it was an expensive hotel - says, in an astonished tone, "You don't speak Chinese!" He proceeds to ask more prying questions as he tries to wrap his head around this perplexing proposition that there are Chinese people that don't speak Chinese - his mind grinding as to where she is to exist within his limited categories. The woman, whose growing irritation suggesting this was not the first time, could only firmly insist that despite appearance she did not. For Chinese people multiethnic identity doesn't exist in China and if it does, as with Tibetians and Uighurs, it must be quickly assimilated. To China, whatever that might mean, Taiwan is China and its independence is an affront to Chinese identity - it is like an abused wife who has run away from her abusive husband and he takes her leaving as is a personal insult that cannot be tolerated, it cannot be allowed. Now that he has the wealth and power to get her back, her opinions are not going to get in the way of what he can only imagine will be a blissful reunion. As to Xi Jinping anticorruption campaign: Yes, Xi did go after corrupt officials, however they were usually the ones he saw as opponents, or potential opponents, as he plotted his way to power. Back when there was still some semblance of a free media in China, those journalists who exposed Xi's supporters as corrupt - well no points for guessing who Xi went after. Xi also little patience with the people of Hong Kong belief that they were a different polity than Mainland China nor did Xi even respect treaties prior administration signed to do so. Something similar Putin also did with Ukrainians even though previous Russian administration had agreed to do so under the Budapest Memorandum. Thank you Mr. Stubb, I did find this an interesting interview and I hope my comments don't come across too harsh. But George Yeo sounded too much like an apologist for a Xi who has turned his New China into a more closed, internally more repressive, and externally more aggresive Old China. I feel sorry for the Chinese people that are under Xi rule, under one man rule they will have to start worring again if they are a white cat or a black cat.weak suffer

[@civicblade1]

On that same note, is it then legitimate for other countries to actively push Hawaii and Alaska to fight for independence since they have only been under US federation for 139 and 167 years respectively? Perhaps Crimea and Donbass region should be part of Russia since they have only been part of Ukraine for 23 and 32 years respectively? The problem with you argument is that you are digging for justifications to back up your forgone conclusion instead of using facts and evidence to come to a conclusion. The current government of China base its terrritory claim on the map that the People's Republic of China established in 1949 and Taiwan was and is still part of China's territory declaration when the People's Republic of China was founded. Historial, it is correct to say that direct documentation and evidence suggest that direct control was exerted over Taiwan for around 200 years but this does not negate the fact that China's claim is legitimate in the eyes of history, recognition by other countries in the world and very strong will of the Chinese people. The only way Taiwan can be independent is if the majority of people living in China does not want Taiwan to be part of China.

[@marklee8512]

No one care on your feelings on Chinese. They are happy to be lead by the CPC. Just mind your own business.

[@eddybell2661]

@@marklee8512 Yep, you clearly reflect the Chinese Governement's attitude to foreigners feelings and concerns. When Australia asked for an enquiry into the origins of Covid-19 in Wuhan, China also said mind your own business and imposed economic sanctions to make sure others got the message. But it even applies to Chinese who you claim are "happy to be lead by the CPC." Zhang Zhan, who reported on the Wuhan Virus out break, was told to mind her own business and sentenced to four years in jail so that other Chinese would know to mind their own business. And what about all those Chinese who protested Covid lock-downs? Many are now being arrested for not minding their own business.

[@WilliamCunninghamII]

I have great respect for both Finland and Singapore and i totally agree with the effort to reduce polarization. Butm China's partnership without limits was not discussed at all Nor were its claims to the South China Sea. All i heard were platiitudes regarding China's history and the need to recognize China's expectation it's history entitles it to take any action they see fit, two of which are listed above. One assumes Finland has no plans to invade Russia in order to regain territory lost during the Winter War? In my view this is this type of thinking in Europe which led to the Russian invasion of a Soverign Nation. Not to mention the deeply deeply unwise decision to become dependent on Russuian energy. Peehaps these issues will be dealt with in future episodes. Please keep them coming.

[@perlkingneo]

The one thing the western never figured out is no matter who sits on that chair, he is never the only warrior fighting against the enemies.

[@KIM72324]

“China and the Catholic Church” that was brilliant 😂

[@cachet633]

???? What does it mean? Country and Religion? Doesn't make sense

[@zhnzhao4035]

@@cachet633it has an opinion said China is a civilization pretended to a country,many of Chinese agree with it(including me).China have a same political religion,the political religion have changed and grown through the history river,but the objective never changed,in Chinese its called 大同，its birth in a ariticle write about 2500years ago,these 2500years China gov(whatever kinds of goverment)and people do all the things its wants to close to it.the first sentence of it :the most common and right way is public(大道之行也，天下为公）. these kind of public including a peason can change his social class,and so on( in the article have discrbled soe of them).China is similar like a religion,difference with western its,its for political not for thology.

[@uselessoldman7964]

History is the past and should be kept apart from where we are today. Taiwan is a democratic free sovereign capitalist country, NOT a Communist authoritarian dictatorship and so shares little if anything with China (historically yes but not now), Taiwan was where those who did not want to be part of the Communist revolution went, to get away from it. Taiwan can look at what happened to Hong Kong, do they want that for themselves? Should Britain go around the world and declare India Canada Australia and all those other sovereign countries as ours since they were once part of our Empire? Not buying Yeo's reasoning, I understand his position but I do not agree with it, that is Imperialism and aggression. Come back in 100 years and things might have changed but for now, uphold the Status Quo and respect Taiwan's independence and sovereignty and most of all its FREEDOM !!

[@jameschu4331]

Can you compare America civil war where force will used to justify the Union of the America. Civil war was fought between communist and nationalist but abruptly intervened by third party - America. So the legacy remains till today.

[@syke76]

Wake up to reality. Nothing is fair in this world. Stop living in dreamland. It is what it is. The people in China want a united country. The CPC will be toppled in an instance if they allowed Taiwan independence. This is what 1.4 billion people want, the 24 million in Taiwan is just a minority.

[@dylanjtjhnsn]

Great discussion. So many more questions to ask him!

[@GGY-yh6li]

There is no misunderstanding, but 200 years of ingrained pride and prejudice. 300 years ago, the European bourgeoisie also did not understand China, but they were obsessed with and praised China to attack the feudal monarchs. For example Voltaire. Even in today's Louvre, you can still see traces of China. But the Opium War made Europe realize that it had become powerful than China. In the conquest of the whole world, they changed from self-confidence to conceit. Today's China is strong but not strong enough. The West still believes that he has the ability to shape China. In-depth understanding and communication between Chinese and Western societies will not come until all methods are proven invalid. I think our generation is doomed to decades of world turmoil.

[@tonytan6547]

Ukraine is a separate country with a seat in UN, whereas Taiwan is not a sovereign state.Just look at what is stated officially in UN about China n Taiwan

[@allo-other]

Interesting, BUT there are mutually exclusive claims in this explanation of XiXiP attitudes. China has centuries of (mostly internal warfare, mostly isolated) history, which have geographically selected for Han homogeneity. However, the CCP has lurched from disaster to disaster during less than a century of imposing an ideology that originated in the West. I am unconvinced that ethnic homogeneity necessarily translates into accord with mandated Xi thoughts. The opinions of expatriate Han illustrate Xi's motivation for repressive control.

[@wowomah6194]

Precisely. The CCP is based almost entirely on Marxist-Leninism and Stalinism, it isn't some organic representation of Chinese culture, history or politics. It follows a similar pattern in that it's repressive and authoritarian, sure, but its values are VERY different in many regards.

[@burtonlee22]

This is excellent!! Hard to find such deep curiosity and inquiry around history today in the USA

[@titusp9488]

sadly this was not in the US ... but in Europe :)

[@Andy-P]

Not sure I would agree with what was said. But very interesting to see how the Han view themselves and American sailors

[@Andy-P]

@@ysw8291 Americans are the allies of my country and they are defending the right of navigation and democracy. I very much disagree with any philiosopy that advocates killing of people - like in Ukraine today for defending human rights. By your definition I have no right to life.

[@sweetchinmusic801]

What we get wrong about China is how peacefully they torture Uighur muslims and other minorities and demolish their places of worship. And how shamelessly and hypocritically the OIC (Organization of Islamic Countries) and Pakistan ignores this while being concerned about the democracies of Israel, India and the West :D

[@一个说话大声的中国人]

Because the West loves China too much. Westerners love China so much, all Westerners have become Jesus, willing to die to bring democracy, justice, happiness, human rights, etc. to Chinese people. So, it has nothing to do with whether we are right or wrong about China.

[@jwu09merage]

Mr. George Yen’s sentiment aligns Beijing’s perspective as well.

[@valkyriprime7444]

One interpretation of China's history has been a long, bloody, violent story of an empire extending its borders through conquest, the basic definition of empire. This speaker sugar coated this history to his view stating that China is "tired" of conquest, having achieved some of wisdom due to its long history in realizing the futility of erasing other cultures. I wonder if the uyghurs, the Hong Kong dissidents, or the thousands of dead people silenced by China agree with his viewpoint. If through a miracle, voice were given to these people whose cultures, languages, and religious views that differ from the "one China" mantra, the uncompromising rallying cry of Chinese conquerors from its first Emperor to the current Xi, what would they say. Additionally, this speaker admired Xi for his patriotic anti-corruption stance. I wonder how much of that is more self serving in the way Xi used corruption to consolidate his power by removing his rivals. I appreciate this speaker's views but at some point, the realities of so many dead voices must wake us from appeasement. The din of their silenced screams must wake us. Will China stop at Taiwan? Will China stop at the borders of Tibet, India, South China Sea, East China Sea, etc? Will China eventually having quench its dream of "one China" become a pacifist? Should Americans stop trying to "contain" China's revanchism because we don't understand China's long ancient history, after all, the borders of its empire do not reach our shores and our own history is a mere drop compared to China's Pacific. To this speaker, I'm tempted to opine let China take Taiwan by force, it's the only way, the Chinese way. Let China take Singapore next, India, and so on. China long and ancient history demands this respect and admiration. The pureness of its ethnicity calls out for one China. Any who oppose are just ignorant of history. Are we ignorant or do we choose not to hear the warning cries of the dead?

[@popcorn6931]

US understands china more than singaporeans do

[@hanamiji359]

It's so wrong when mentioning Cairo Declaration. It clearly stated that Taiwan and Penghu will be restored to "Republic of China", which is "Taiwan" or "R.O.C" for commonly known terms; Not restoring to "People's Republic of China". Taiwan operates as a democratic country. As regard of China ("People's Republic of China").... , we all know...

[@ssss8162]

Republic of China was the name of China at that time. Even if China changes its name to Paradise China, it is still the same country. Nice try.

[@kennyyap9745]

KMT IS FORM BY FIRST PRESIDENT OF CHINA MR SUN YAT SEN...& LIBERATION FROM QING GOVERNMENT UNDERSTAND...

[@horridohobbies]

This year, China will become a high-income country as defined by the World Bank (~$13,000 per capita GDP). This is remarkable.

[@markiobook8639]

Boastful Chinese are too stupid to realise this means America can remove a nummber of pro-Chinese

[@thusspokezarathustra]

Think this discussion took a view of China through 'rose tinted spectacles'. Yes, China has a highly monolithic culture - we saw during the Covid pandemic how the Chinese literally chased Africans out of city centres. Let's be honest here - China has a brutal history of oppression of its own people. Millions we brutally killed during the various Communist revolutions. The shameful treatment and subjection of Tibetans and Uyghurs - simply because these unique cultural groups do not fit neatly within the CCP ideological mould in fact points to the fact that China is not a monolithic culture, but as all other developed or developing states, a sum of varying ethic nuances making up that population. China's claims to the northerly chain of islands with Japan, the Russia-China War, its influence over North Korea and the still remaining tensions that remain post Korean War, as well as China's illegitimate and contested claims to the south China Sea all point to China in fact very much being expansionary driven. Its intensions towards Tiawan make that very clear. If China was willing to accepted the fact that Taiwan has developed as a flourishing democracy for many decades and would rather than attempt to once again stamp claims on the island nation - instead accept what time has developed and rather focus on fostering good trading relations and good family relations without the need to dominate - that eventually through mutual fellowship and cooperation the two nations would naturally grow together and form strong bonds of kinship. The fact that China cannot and will not leave be - but voices interest to dominate, shows that China is definitely not a peace loving nation - its actions within Hong Kong spelt what its intentions are towards Taiwan far more clearly than its utterances to the contrary. Should China forcefully retake Taiwan it would fundamentally change for the worse all that has been achieved over the decades within Taiwan. So no, I do not agree that China has a monolithic population which all agree on its history or its goals or its ideology. Both Hong Kong and Taiwan depicted what could have been achieved on a far grander scale had the Chinese state rather followed a democratic path, than the path they have chosen to date.

[@nashlandon1310]

China is majority Han and the others form a small percentage of the population. So they can be ignored. China has a followed path that is successful for them so Why would they follow democratic path?

[@civicblade1]

Xinjiang and Tibet are now peaceful and properous regions of China. Hong Kong is now free from violent riots. The Korean divide is not purely due to China's actions, the US has a much bigger role to play in the divided Korean situation. China has legitimate claims over islands in the South China Seas and these disputes hasn't been settle and are ongoing disputes on territorial claims and you are so quick to dimiss China's claim. China does not claim any island north of Japan, get your facts right. China's only dispute with Japan is over the Diaoyu island. What you have written are mostly emotional statements without any basis on facts. Why do you hate China so much that you resort to spouting non-sense? Do you get paid by the CIA? Or are you brainwashed by mainstream western media?

[@thusspokezarathustra]

@@civicblade1 disagreeing with a government or state ideology does not equal "hate" towards the Chinese as a people. I simply feel and know that the Chinese people are not truly free and are not treated humanely. For example I point to your government's actions during the pandemic. I also reiterate that the CCP has much of your peoples bloid on its hands, as millions were killed due to the political ideology the CCP follow. Again I point to Taiwan and Hong Kong before the handover to China. Both are shining examples of what China could be had it opened up its economy and followed democratic principals. China is managed by an autocratic state. The Chinese people have little say over how their future evolves. I feel that the Chinese people deserve better as they a hardworking and conscientious people. Hopefully one day they will experience true freedom.

[@kkchew18]

​@@thusspokezarathustra you are so wrong in your views. Have you been to China including Xinjiang, Tibet and even Hong Kong? Make a trip to these places and mingle with the common folks. Then draw your conclusions.

[@thusspokezarathustra]

@@kkchew18 I don't need to go to China to understand the negative impact China has had on Hong Kong since the agreement it cosigned with UK was dishonoured. Less freedom of expression/speech. More political bullying. More civilian surveillance and more people imprisoned who dare speak out against such state overreached. This is what you get when you choose Communism and top down brutal oppression. Then again, you denied access to western media which shows exactly what life is about in China. Good luck. Enjoy your dictatorship. Happy to stay well away from China.

[@johnstevens6865]

Comparing the reunification of Germany as similar to or equivalent to the "reunification" of China and Taiwan is a stretch to say the least.

[@GK-zu8zs]

Why? Both were separated because of war, both are the same peoples

[@selegovskis]

​@@GK-zu8zs the question is do Taiwanese want unification? Germans wanted it and it happened. Taiwanese don't want it and so it shall be. It is irrelevant what other people want.

[@cpxh7703]

​@@selegovskisIt's not up to what you want or think. It is solely a Chinese issue.

[@selegovskis]

@@cpxh7703 yes and the Chinese in Taiwan say that they want to be free.

[@三斤石]

What if the majority of a city of the Taiwan island want to reunify with the mainland China? Do you think the Taiwan government let it?

[@kyyyni]

Actually, China *has* always been expansionist. The thing is, its arc of its expansion has takaen place over so long a course in history that it's not always immediately recognized as what it is. The cradle of Han civilization constitutes only a tiny part of present-day China. And there's a long history of China having triburary/vassal states outside the empire too.

[@mchparity]

There is no DNA for a single Han Chinese. We're Han because we see the light of our civilisation. Like a religion, but much much better. One can call it cultural assimilation. One can even call it cultural geonicide if one's a sicko with words.

[@cherubimcherubim9515]

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said the United States has been at peace for only 16 of its 242 years as a nation, calling the country "the most warlike nation in the history of the world." From directly launching wars, backing proxy wars, stirring up inter-state hostilities to engineering "color revolutions," the United States has been involved in most of the major warfares or military conflicts since WWII. These wars and conflicts have devastated the invaded countries, killed millions of civilians, and displaced tens of millions.William Jones, Washington bureau chief of the U.S. publication Executive Intelligence Review, has said that Russia's main concern about NATO eastward expansion has never been heeded by the United States, "which is only interested in maintaining its hegemonic status in Europe, and which has been steadily retreating from that collaborative policy which the West committed itself to after the Cold War."

[@haijunpeng3848]

Understanding history is the first step, which many Western politicians and journalists have failed.