Who is Dr Anji Sinha? Our US bureau chief finds that the key to this story lies in relationships.

Synopsis: Every third Friday of the month, The Straits Times gets its US Bureau Chief to analyse the hottest political and trending talking points.

As of the publication of this episode on March 21, nothing much is known about the person recently nominated by US President Donald Trump to become the top American diplomat in Singapore beyond his or her name.

The Straits Times’ senior columnist Lin Suling and US bureau chief Bhagyashree Garekar reveal the detective work involved in trying to uncover who US President Donald Trump’s nominee for US Ambassador to Singapore is - from following the breadcrumbs laid out by contacts to dealing with dead ends and working the phones to reveal the Florida connection.

Highlights (click/tap above):

03:00 The significance of the US Ambassador to Singapore

04:55 Uncovering who Dr Anji Sinha is

07:34 A tip-off and a subtle hint 

09:53 Dealing with hesitant sources, sensitive diplomatic matters

14:17 Broadening contacts

17:28 The Trump administration’s cautious approach

19:46 The Florida Connection

25:02 Looking ahead: The confirmation process

Read Bhagyashree Garekar’s articles: https://str.sg/whNo 

Read Lin Suling’s articles: https://str.sg/nnEQ 

Follow Lin Suling on LinkedIn: https://str.sg/t2RX 

Read Clement Tan's articles: https://str.sg/Ep62 

Follow Clement Tan on X: https://str.sg/uErS 

Register for Asian Insider newsletter: https://str.sg/stnewsletters

Host: Lin Suling (linsuling@sph.com.sg)

Produced and edited by: Fa’izah Sani

Executive producer: Ernest Luis

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Feedback to: podcast@sph.com.sg

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