WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG) - Mr Lee Kuan Yew was the "father" of modern Singapore who helped bring his country and South-east Asia into the modern era, said former US President George W. Bush.

"The nation he leaves behind is an influential force for stability and prosperity and a friend to the United States," Mr Bush said in a statement.

Mr Bush's father, former US president George H. W. Bush, said he was proud to have called Mr Lee a friend.

"I respected his effective leadership of his wonderful, resilient and innovative country in ways that lifted living standards without indulging a culture of corruption," he said.

Mr Lee, who died on Monday aged 91, was Singapore's first elected prime minister.