Professor Kishore Mahbubani is a prominent Singaporean academic and the Founding Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in NUS. He’s an ex-diplomat who served as Singapore's Permanent Representative to the United Nations and held various senior positions in Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He’s also an author known for his sharp commentary on global affairs, particularly regarding the rise of China and Asia as a whole, the decline of the American Empire and its implication for global political economy. He’s written books such as “Has China Won” and “Can Asians Think” and his latest one – Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir. 

In this episode, Kishore Mahbubani joins us in conversation about his life and lessons from years of working as a diplomat. We talk about the rise of Asia, the curious case of Singapore's first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, the strengths of ASEAN, US-China relations and if we're getting closer to World War III.