Singapore, Dec. 12: A top Singaporean diplomat described India as “stupid”, saying the country was “half in, half out” of the Asean (Association of SouthEast Asian Nations) grouping, according to US cables.
The whistle-blower website Wikileaks released several US state department cables that contained controversial comments by senior Singaporean foreign affairs officials on India and Asian allies like Malaysia, Thailand and Japan.
The cables containing comments made during Singaporean diplomats’ meetings with senior US officials such as deputy secretary of defence for east Asia, Mr David Sedney, between 2008 and last year were exclusively leaked to Australia’s Fairfax Media Group.
In one of the cables, Singapore’s ambassador-at-large, Mr Tommy Koh, called Japan “the big fat loser” in the context of improving ties between China and Asean.
According to Australian newspapers which carried the contents of the cables, Mr Koh attributed the relative decline of Japan’s position in the region to its “stupidity and lack of vision.”
Mr Koh was “equally merciless towards India, describing his “stupid Indian friends” as “half in, half out” of Asean,” a leaked cable said.