balakrishnan: not surprising.at dynamic there and how are you expecting it to play out? dr. balakrishnan: the same principles apply. are you willing, able? shery: are you back as well? dr. balakrishnan: we would welcome the application in the same way we would welcome any economy that is willing and able to meet our standards. having said that, there are obviously political compu -- complications and that. like many of the issues across the street, you do need resolution. you need a meeting of minds. shery: what about the meeting of minds when it comes to myanmar? the u.s. has talked about singapore having financial leverage on that point in order to help achieve democracy. dr. balakrishnan: what is happening in myanmar is a tragedy. a real tragedy. not just on progress towards democracy but its impact on the ordinary people. the increase in poverty, the pandemic, it's really a terrible shame that this has happened. the second point is not to overestimate the impact of external. it won't work. from years of workin