Commenting on Singapore’s positioning in the US-China trade conflict and how they can navigate the conflict without picking sides, SMU Associate Professor of Political Science John Donaldson said that Singapore had been effective thus far in building an image as a mediator that was unaligned with either side, and discussed how the election of US President-elect Donald Trump might put more pressure on trade organisations, and how Singapore under Prime Minister Lawrence Wong could try to encourage multilateralism amidst growing uncertainty over cooperation.