Sri Lanka, Aug. 9 -- On Singapore's 61st National Day, Professor Rohan Gunaratna pays tribute to Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's founding father, recalling his personal encounters with the statesman and his remarkable foresight on terrorism, regional security and the future of Southeast Asia.

Gunaratna, Professor of Security Studies at Nanyang Technological University, first met Lee Kuan Yew at the Istana in October 2002, just weeks before the Bali bombings that would become Southeast Asia's deadliest terrorist attack at the time.

He recalls the meeting as being less like a conventional political discussion and more like a conversation between a teacher and a student.

"His mind was razor sharp," Gunaratna recalls, noting that Lee asked him a...