Leaders meeting as friends

Then German Chancellor Helmut Kohl meeting Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew for a private working lunch in Singapore on Nov 20, 1995. Mr Lee had a personal relationship with Dr Kohl whom he lauded as a "great German who reunified Germany, and as a greate
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Then German Chancellor Helmut Kohl meeting Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew for a private working lunch in Singapore on Nov 20, 1995. Mr Lee had a personal relationship with Dr Kohl whom he lauded as a "great German who reunified Germany, and as a greater European who wanted Germany as part of a supranational Europe to avoid the disastrous European wars of the last century". Dr Kohl, in turn, had described Mr Lee as "a valued friend and counsellor", and would often consult him on China. When he hosted Mr Lee in Germany in 1996, he commissioned a regional dish that he reserved for special guests - a type of sausage delicacy called saumagen, made of spiced meats, encased in a pig's stomach and boiled.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on June 18, 2017, with the headline Leaders meeting as friends. Subscribe