Small countries need more cooperation with companies, NGOs in fractured world: Teo Chee Hean

As multilateral cooperation becomes frayed, polylateral arrangements can help support global cooperation in key areas such as AI guardrails, said Temasek chairman Teo Chee Hean on Wednesday (Oct 28).

Temasek Holdings chairman Teo Chee Hean (left) engages in a fireside chat with Steward Leadership Institute chairman Professor Arnoud De Meyer during the Steward Leadership Summit 2026 at the Hilton Singapore Orchard, Oct 28, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Wallace Woon)

This audio is generated by an AI tool.

SINGAPORE: Small countries like Singapore need more "polylateral" cooperation with countries and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in a changing and fractured world, Temasek Holdings chairman Teo Chee Hean said on Wednesday (Oct 27).

As multilateral cooperation has become "frayed and weak", polylateral arrangements can help support global cooperation, alongside bilateral and plurilateral partnerships between countries, the former senior minister said.

"This can provide the foundation upon which we rebuild the multilateral layer when the time is right," he said during a fireside chat at the Steward Leadership Summit.

Pointing to past experience, Mr Teo said Singapore pursued more bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) after the 1999 World Trade Organization (WTO) meetings, as it realised that "getting things done through the WTO was going to be very difficult".

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less The WTO Ministerial Conference in Seattle in 1999 failed to reach agreement and faced large-scale anti-globalisation protests. He noted that many countries are taking a similar approach today, pointing to how the European Union, Canada and India have recently concluded long-stalled FTA negotiations. Mr Teo was addressing public and private sector leaders at the Hilton Singapore Orchard, in the summit organised by the Steward Leadership Institute, a non-profit organisation established by Temasek Holdings. In his keynote address ahead of the fireside chat, Mr Teo said that dramatic changes in geopolitics, technology, energy and business are converging. These, he added, must be dealt with not as single issues but through comprehensive, interconnected strategies. " Major power and geopolitical competition will remain with us for some time, even if open conflicts subside or even if there are leadership transitions in some countries," he said. "Smaller countries and businesses cannot afford to stand still and wait in silence in the hope that things will somehow go back where we were before. They will not." Mr Teo said smaller countries and businesses therefore have to create options for themselves. This involves s tewardship guided by a clear purpose, disciplined governance, enlightened self-interest and a responsibility towards future generations. For government and business leaders, this means prioritising the creation of long-term value and sustainable returns, instead of short-term thinking in response to pressures. "You may maximise deal to deal, but in the end you lose friends, you lose partners, and you find that people may choose to deal with somebody else rather than you," he said. Mr Teo also highlighted discussions around artificial intelligence (AI) guardrails as one area that could benefit from polylateral cooperation. This could include a coalition of governments, major AI companies and NGOs, as well as unions, as workers have valid concerns about how they will be affected by AI adoption, he said. In the case of AI, he noted that Singapore bucks a global trend of developed economies being less accepting of the technology, pointing to survey results that show more local acceptance for AI than concern about the risks it poses, such as job displacement. He attributed this to people's confidence that the Singapore government will be able to put in place appropriate restraints on AI use, limiting some of the technology's societal ills and dangers. After many waves of industrial and workforce transformation, there is confidence that the tripartite partnership of government, employers and unions will help workers make the transition to the age of AI, he said.

The WTO Ministerial Conference in Seattle in 1999 failed to reach agreement and faced large-scale anti-globalisation protests.

He noted that many countries are taking a similar approach today, pointing to how the European Union, Canada and India have recently concluded long-stalled FTA negotiations.

Mr Teo was addressing public and private sector leaders at the Hilton Singapore Orchard, in the summit organised by the Steward Leadership Institute, a non-profit organisation established by Temasek Holdings.

In his keynote address ahead of the fireside chat, Mr Teo said that dramatic changes in geopolitics, technology, energy and business are converging.

These, he added, must be dealt with not as single issues but through comprehensive, interconnected strategies.

" Major power and geopolitical competition will remain with us for some time, even if open conflicts subside or even if there are leadership transitions in some countries," he said.

"Smaller countries and businesses cannot afford to stand still and wait in silence in the hope that things will somehow go back where we were before. They will not."

Mr Teo said smaller countries and businesses therefore have to create options for themselves. This involves s tewardship guided by a clear purpose, disciplined governance, enlightened self-interest and a responsibility towards future generations.

For government and business leaders, this means prioritising the creation of long-term value and sustainable returns, instead of short-term thinking in response to pressures.

"You may maximise deal to deal, but in the end you lose friends, you lose partners, and you find that people may choose to deal with somebody else rather than you," he said.

Mr Teo also highlighted discussions around artificial intelligence (AI) guardrails as one area that could benefit from polylateral cooperation.

This could include a coalition of governments, major AI companies and NGOs, as well as unions, as workers have valid concerns about how they will be affected by AI adoption, he said.

In the case of AI, he noted that Singapore bucks a global trend of developed economies being less accepting of the technology, pointing to survey results that show more local acceptance for AI than concern about the risks it poses, such as job displacement.

He attributed this to people's confidence that the Singapore government will be able to put in place appropriate restraints on AI use, limiting some of the technology's societal ills and dangers.

After many waves of industrial and workforce transformation, there is confidence that the tripartite partnership of government, employers and unions will help workers make the transition to the age of AI, he said.

Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox

Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories

Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app

淡马锡董事长张志贤周三（10月28日）表示，随着多边合作日渐疏远，多边安排可以帮助支持人工智能防护措施等关键领域的全球合作。

2026年10月28日，在新加坡希尔顿乌节酒店举行的2026年斯图尔德领导力峰会上，淡马锡控股主席张志贤（左）与斯图尔德领导力学院主席阿诺德·德·梅耶教授进行炉边谈话。（图片：CNA/Wallace Woon）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

新加坡：淡马锡控股主席张志贤周三（10月27日）表示，在当今这个不断变化且日益分裂的世界中，像新加坡这样的小国需要与其他国家和非政府组织（NGO）开展更多“多边”合作。

这位前高级部长表示，由于多边合作变得“松散而薄弱”，多边安排可以与各国之间的双边和诸边伙伴关系一起，帮助支持全球合作。

“这可以为我们在时机成熟时重建多边层面奠定基础，”他在斯图尔德领导力峰会的一次炉边谈话中说道。

张先生指出过去的经验，新加坡在 1999 年世界贸易组织 (WTO) 会议之后寻求更多双边自由贸易协定 (FTA)，因为它意识到“通过 WTO 做事将非常困难”。

CNA游戏 猜词游戏 逐行破解单词 流行词游戏 用给定的字母组成单词 迷你数独 小谜题，脑力挑战 迷你填字游戏 小方格，大挑战 单词搜索 尽可能多地找出单词 显示更多 显示更少 1999年在西雅图举行的世贸组织部长级会议未能达成协议，并面临大规模的反全球化抗议。他指出，如今许多国家都在采取类似的策略，并以欧盟、加拿大和印度最近结束长期停滞的自由贸易协定谈判为例。张先生在新加坡希尔顿乌节酒店向公共和私营部门领导人发表讲话，此次峰会由淡马锡控股旗下的非营利组织斯图尔德领导力学院主办。在炉边谈话之前的主题演讲中，张先生表示，地缘政治、技术、能源和商业领域正在发生剧烈的变化。他补充说，这些问题必须通过全面、相互关联的战略来解决，而不是作为单一问题来处理。 “即便公开冲突平息，即便一些国家出现领导层更迭，大国竞争和地缘政治博弈仍将持续一段时间，”他说道。“小国和企业不能袖手旁观，坐等一切恢复原状。这是不可能的。”张先生表示，因此，小国和企业必须为自己创造更多选择。这需要以明确的目标为导向，实行严谨的治理，秉持明智的自身利益，并对子孙后代负责。对于政府和企业领导人而言，这意味着要优先考虑创造长期价值和可持续回报，而不是为了应对压力而进行短期决策。“你或许能逐笔交易做到利润最大化，但最终你会失去朋友，失去合作伙伴，你会发现人们可能会选择与其他人而不是你做生意，”他说道。张先生还强调，围绕人工智能（AI）安全保障的讨论是多边合作可以发挥作用的领域之一。他表示，这可能包括政府、大型人工智能公司、非政府组织以及工会组成的联盟，因为工人对人工智能应用将如何影响自身存在合理的担忧。他指出，就人工智能而言，新加坡与发达经济体普遍对这项技术接受度较低的全球趋势背道而驰，并援引调查结果显示，新加坡民众对人工智能的接受度高于对其潜在风险（例如失业）的担忧。他认为，这源于民众相信新加坡政府能够对人工智能的使用进行适当的限制，从而减少这项技术带来的一些社会弊端和危险。他表示，经过多轮产业和劳动力转型，人们相信政府、雇主和工会的三方合作将帮助工人顺利过渡到人工智能时代。

1999 年在西雅图举行的世界贸易组织部长级会议未能达成协议，并面临大规模的反全球化抗议活动。

他指出，如今许多国家都采取了类似的做法，并举例说，欧盟、加拿大和印度最近都结束了长期停滞的自由贸易协定谈判。

张先生在新加坡希尔顿乌节酒店向公共和私营部门领导人发表了讲话。此次峰会由淡马锡控股公司旗下的非营利组织斯图尔德领导力学院主办。

在炉边谈话之前的主题演讲中，张先生表示，地缘政治、技术、能源和商业领域的巨大变化正在汇聚。

他补充说，这些问题不能作为单一问题来解决，而必须通过全面、相互关联的战略来解决。

他说：“即使公开冲突平息，甚至一些国家出现领导层更迭，大国和地缘政治竞争仍将持续一段时间。”

“小国和小企业不能袖手旁观，坐等一切恢复原状。这不可能。”

张先生表示，因此，较小的国家和企业必须为自身创造更多选择。这需要以明确的目标为指导，实行严谨的治理，秉持明智的自身利益，并对子孙后代负责。

对于政府和企业领导人来说，这意味着要优先考虑创造长期价值和可持续回报，而不是在压力下进行短期思考。

他说：“你或许能最大限度地提高每笔交易的收益，但最终你会失去朋友、失去合作伙伴，你会发现人们可能会选择和其他人而不是你做生意。”

张先生还强调，围绕人工智能（AI）安全防护措施的讨论是可以从多边合作中受益的一个领域。

他表示，这可能包括政府、主要人工智能公司和非政府组织以及工会组成的联盟，因为工人对人工智能的应用将如何影响他们有合理的担忧。

在人工智能方面，他指出新加坡逆全球发达经济体对这项技术的接受度普遍较低的趋势而行，并指出调查结果显示，新加坡民众对人工智能的接受度高于对人工智能带来的风险（例如失业）的担忧。

他将此归因于人们对新加坡政府能够对人工智能的使用进行适当限制的信心，从而限制这项技术带来的一些社会弊病和危险。

他表示，经过多轮产业和劳动力转型之后，人们相信政府、雇主和工会的三方合作将帮助工人过渡到人工智能时代。

订阅我们的邮件，即可获取精选热点新闻和引人深思的文章。

订阅通知，第一时间获取突发新闻和精彩报道。

加入我们的频道，即可在您常用的聊天应用上获取当日热门文章。