Singapore PM: Global rules could change with China's rise

Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong delivers a keynote address during the opening dinner of the 18th International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-la Dialogue, an annual defense and security forum in Asia, in Singapore, Friday, May 31, 2019. (AP Photo/Yong Teck Lim)

SINGAPORE – Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong says countries including the United States need to be willing to change international rules in response to a stronger China.

"Countries have to accept that China will continue to grow and strengthen, and that it is neither possible nor wise for them to prevent this from happening," Lee said Friday in a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual security conference in Singapore.

He added that China has "its own legitimate interests and ambitions" and that new rules need to be made in areas such as trade, intellectual property, cybersecurity and social media.

The Shangri-La Dialogue is being attended by U.S. Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe and other defense officials and academics.