WASHINGTON - MINISTER Mentor Lee Kuan Yew capped a series of meetings with top US leaders by calling on President Barack Obama at the White House on Friday.

The meeting at the Oval Office was the first between the two leaders, and lasted for about 45 minutes.

In his introductory remarks, Mr Obama described Mr Lee as 'one of the legendary figures of Asia in the 20th and 21st centuries, somebody who helped to trigger the Asian economic miracle'.

The US leader added: 'Singapore has been an outstanding friend and ally of the United States for many, many years, and so I am very much looking forward to the opportunity of hearing from the Minister Mentor his views on the evolving situation in Asia, as I prepare for my upcoming trip both to Singapore and to other key nations in the region.'

In about two weeks, Mr Obama will embark on his first major visit to Asia as President, stopping in major cities like Tokyo, Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai and Seoul.

In Singapore, he will attend the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit as well as the inaugural US-Asean summit.

Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times

chinhon@sph.com.sg