World Archives - The Singapore Post

Born in the USA? China targeted in Trump’s birthright citizenship fight

31Mar

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Born in the USA? China targeted in Trump’s birthright citizenship fight

As Supreme Court decision looms, Chinese nationals find themselves at the centre of disputed core constitutional issue: who is an American? The US Supreme Court will hear arguments on Wednesday on birthright citizenship, with Chinese nationals at the centre of disputed claims of abuse amplified by US President Donald Trump’s immigration campaign. “Birthright Citizenship is not about rich people from China, and the rest of the World, who want their children, and hundreds of thousands more, FOR PAY, to ridiculously become citizens of the United States of America. It is about the BABIES OF SLAVES!” Trump wrote on social media on Monday. The president’s comments echo assertions about so-called birth tourism, which framed much of the conversation at a hearing on birthrig

Partial government shutdown becomes the longest in US history

29Mar

By Nectar GanNo Comments

Partial government shutdown becomes the longest in US history

The partial US government shutdown has become the longest in history, as lawmakers in Washington continue to fight over funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). On Sunday, the shutdown reached 44 days, surpassing the previous longest funding lapse, which ended in November 2025. The current impasse has led to chaos at airports due to a shortage of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers at security checkpoints, as they have gone without paycheques since it began. White House border tsar Tom Homan said on Sunday that TSA agents should start receiving pay early next week after US President Donald Trump signed an order attempting to free up cash. It is unclear, though, whether Trump's executive order will face legal challenges, as the US c...

Singapore’s lessons from Trump’s Iran War

25Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

Singapore’s lessons from Trump’s Iran War

A strategic location coupled with a close U.S. partnership makes for an attractive military target. The United Arab Emirates was long considered an untouchable island of stability, peace, and prosperity. But since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, the latter has been pummeling the UAE with missiles and drones because of its close and long-standing security partnership with the United States. Now, the UAE, including its crown jewel, Dubai, is badly battered. Although businesses are trying to stick it out, thousands of residents have fled, and tourism is at a standstill. Seaborne trade—including oil and liquefied natural gas exports, along with vital food and other imports—has largely stopped due to Iran’s quasi-closure of the Strait of Hormuz. This is all the more worr

U.S.–China Aligned on Ends, Divided on Means in the Iran War

24Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

U.S.–China Aligned on Ends, Divided on Means in the Iran War

On February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, a sustained aerial campaign targeting Iranian nuclear facilities, military infrastructure, and regime leadership, which killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Tehran retaliated by launching missiles and drones at its Gulf neighbors, leading to a rupture in the diplomatic framework that had governed international engagement with its nuclear program for two decades, however imperfectly. Amid a widening regional war, President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping were scheduled to meet in Beijing at the end of March, though Trump asked to delay the visit amid ongoing developments in the Middle East. While Washington and Beijing remain rivals, they share certain overlapping interests on Iran, ...

Asia faces crisis from Mideast disruption, Singapore foreign minister warns

23Mar

By Stuart WhiteNo Comments

Asia faces crisis from Mideast disruption, Singapore foreign minister warns

The war against Iran threatens to send Asian economies into crisis, Singapore’s foreign minister said on Monday, a stark warning in a region that is acutely exposed to the massive disruption of Middle East energy supplies."Right now the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is, in a sense, an Asian crisis," Vivian Balakrishnan ‌told In remarks made over an hour-long interview, he also raised questions about the necessity and legality of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran that is now entering its fourth week, saying the "entire global economy has been taken hostage" by a conflict that could usher in a financial crisis. The war has shut down the Strait of Hormuz through which 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas flow, pushing up oil prices and raising fears of a renewed spike in gl

Beyond the Gulf: China’s Strategic Calculus in the US–Israel Conflict with Iran

21Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

Beyond the Gulf: China’s Strategic Calculus in the US–Israel Conflict with Iran

The 2026 Iran war exposes China’s energy vulnerabilities but simultaneously creates strategic space for Beijing to expand diplomatic influence, recalibrate partnerships, and advance its position within a shifting global order The late-February 2026 US and Israeli military strikes on Iran, including the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, alongside the long-standing Washington–Tehran rivalry, carry significant implications for China’s geopolitical and economic interests. As the world’s largest energy importer and a rising global power with expanding interests in the Middle East, China is highly exposed to regional instability. A US–Israel conflict with Iran that draws in other regional actors would not only reshape Middle Eastern security dynamics but also affect China

How the Iran war is stretching America thin against China

20Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

How the Iran war is stretching America thin against China

A prolonged Iran war is draining US munitions, critical minerals and industrial capacity, and weakening the country’s defence base and military presence in Asia as rivalry with China intensifies, observes academic Hao Nan. When US military assets begin shifting from West Pacific key allies, the strategic meaning stretches far beyond Iran. Seoul has acknowledged discussions over redeploying some US Patriot systems, and South Korea’s president has openly said his government cannot stop Washington from moving weapons out of the peninsula. At the same time, two US guided-missile destroyers homeported in Yokosuka are now supporting operations tied to the Iran war, while the only US carrier forward-deployed in Asia is in maintenance. That is not a minor logistic

Surge in US gas prices deepens political peril for Trump over Iran

17Mar

By Stuart WhiteNo Comments

Surge in US gas prices deepens political peril for Trump over Iran

In the third week of the joint US-Israeli war against Iran, Donald Trump faces decisions that could define the rest of his presidency. But if the American commander-in-chief is grappling with a war of choice that seems in danger of spiralling in ways he can't control, those concerns are not playing out in public. In more than an hour of public remarks at the White House on Monday, he discussed his thinking on the state of the war effort - and also on Kennedy Center renovations, White House ballroom construction plans, this year's World Cup tournament, the health of a Republican congressman and a host of other unrelated topics. It was classic Trump, as unscripted and wide-ranging as ever. This past weekend, he played golf at his Florida resort. And on his Truth Social website,...

Trump’s China Trip on Hold: Strait of Hormuz Standoff Intensifies

16Mar

By Joanne SerriehNo Comments

Trump’s China Trip on Hold: Strait of Hormuz Standoff Intensifies

President Donald Trump hinted at delaying his scheduled visit to China, pressing Beijing to assist in alleviating the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz amid the Iran conflict. This decision could strain U.S.-China relations, which are already tense due to tariff threats and ongoing trade negotiations. President Donald Trump has suggested he might postpone his much-awaited trip to China, as he intensifies pressure on Beijing to aid in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, crucial for easing the spiking oil prices during the Iran conflict. In a Sunday interview with the Financial Times, Trump emphasized China's dependence on Middle Eastern oil, urging its involvement in forming a new coalition to resume oil tanker movement after Iranian threats compromised global oil distribution. Trump's ...

Trump’s China visit likely won’t yield breakthrough, with stability key goal

9Mar

By Grace TsoiNo Comments

Trump’s China visit likely won’t yield breakthrough, with stability key goal

A summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping this month is unlikely to create room for even a limited reset of business and investment ties, five people briefed on preparations said. American business leaders at this stage have not secured the CEO delegation some had sought. On the other side, there is no indication Beijing is on track for the investment protections it has sought on behalf of Chinese companies. Washington and Beijing are looking to maintain the stability that has characterized relations between the world's two largest economies since late last year after a bruising period marked by Trump’s tariffs and China’s chokehold on rare earths exports. But some U.S. companies had also held out hope Trump’s visit could go further than a green ligh