"By 2007 there should be a new prime minister in charge," Goh told the Associated Press in an exclusive interview on Jan 11.

Goh - Singapore's prime minister for the past 10 years - had earlier sparked speculation that he would leave office soon when he said he would step down after 2002, the deadline for the country's next general elections.

"I said I would be here until after 2002 ... That doesn't mean immediately after," he said, laughing.

Goh said Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, son of Lee Kuan Yew, was the "obvious" choice as his successor.

"He's my deputy prime minister. He has made an impression in terms of his confidence, in terms of his political acumen," Goh said.

Goh, 59, said he was determined to make sure that Singapore's long-ruling People's Action Party or PAP had a high-quality team in place before he leaves office.

Singapore leaders have often bemoaned the difficulty of getting bright, capable young people in government when there are such attractive private-sector opportunities in the affluent Southeast Asian city-state.

The PAP also needs to work to win over younger voters, Goh said. The party, though firmly entrenched in power, faces growing dissatisfaction among the young over its strict social and political controls. Critics say the government is authoritarian and stifles creativity.

"We are specifically trying to look for potential officeholders with a different mindset, with a different cut," Goh said.

The elder Lee was prime minister from the country's independence in 1965 until he yielded that position to Goh in 1990. He continues to wield considerable influence under the title of Senior Minister.

During his interview with the AP, Goh also touched on how his own leadership style was different from that of Senior Minister Lee, who is widely known for his fiery tirades against political opponents, foreign journalists and Western-style democracy.

"I am less provocative in disagreeing with a person," Goh said. He added that the senior minister "is more combative. If he disagrees with you, it's in a very combative manner," Goh said. "I would disagree with you gently."

Goh noted that Lee's political history was vastly different from his own, as the senior minister took the helm as his party was jostling for power with communists and ethnic communal groups in the former British colony.

"At that time if you were not firm and tough, you would be swallowed up and digested by the communists and communalists," Goh said.