Laughter and banter flowed freely as Mr Lee Kuan Yew met with former top United States diplomat George Shultz on Monday night for dinner.

Mr Lee hosted the private meal for the former American Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury at Sky on 57th at the Marina Bay Sands. Mr Shultz is in Singapore to attend a meeting on nuclear threats.

Both men, who have been friends since 1973, had worked on forging closer political and economic ties between the United States and South-east Asia for decades.

The mood was warm and cozy as the two men enjoyed a dinner of Franco-Asian fare.

Earlier on Monday morning, Dr Shultz had called on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Istana, along with former US Secretary of Defence William Perry and former US Senator Sam Nunn.

The group are in Singapore for the Nuclear Threat Initiative meeting, which starts on Tuesday.