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'Long before we were connected to China, we were connected to the United States, to Japan, Korea, India and so on... that's how we became a vibrant and prosperous hub and an international cosmopolitan city,' he said in English.
Mr Lee was speaking last night at the 90th anniversary dinner of one of Singapore's oldest clan associations.
But, he said, Singaporeans can also do their bit to help the new arrivals settle in.
His advice to Singaporeans, delivered in Mandarin, was to 'have a bigger and more forgiving heart' in relating to them as 'many of their next generation will be Singaporeans, born and bred here'.
Mr Lee was the guest of honour at the dinner of Chin Kang Huay Kuan, in which a large minority are recent immigrants.
They number a few hundred among its 1,200 members who all trace their ancestry to Chin Kang city in China's south-eastern Fujian province.
Speaking first in Chinese, the Minister Mentor lauded the association for not only helping new immigrants to adapt and grow roots here, but also for contributing to the larger community.
He said his link with the association goes back to 1955 when he visited its clubhouse in Bukit Pasoh Road while contesting the first general election in Tanjong Pagar constituency.
In commending its activities, he also noted that while other clan associations have faced dwindling membership, Chin Kang has succeeded in drawing in newcomers from their ancestral hometown.
'These new immigrants and their brood are the nestling ground for future leaders of this association,' he said in Mandarin.
Switching to English, he then reminded the new immigrants at the dinner that English was the lingua franca here.
While they should 'keep their links with their old culture', he urged them to 'master English and get into the centre of action because we are not connected just to China'.
Mr Lee sees a bright future here for new immigrants from India and China.
The reason is they 'revive and boost the connections' with these Asian giants, which are important if Singapore is to remain plugged into all the major centres of economic growth.
One new immigrant who agreed with MMLee about the importance of English was MrJames Ke, 29, an entrepreneur and a Chin Kang member.
'Without English, you cannot communicate effectively with other races in Singapore or do business internationally,' he said.
Mr Ke, who came to Singapore to study English at the age of 16, became a citizen four years later.
The bachelor recalled his first English class at a private school.
His teacher had asked: 'How old are you?'
He replied: 'I'm fine.'
It set the whole class laughing.
He brushed up on his English by making it a point to memorise at least 10 new words a day from the dictionary, amassing a new vocabulary of close to 3,000 words over two years.
