Manage boundary issues well or risk poisoning SG-Msia ties - PM Lee
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recounted today how he had previously attempted to “turn things around” for bilateral relations with Malaysia.
Speaking after the annual Singapore-Malaysia leaders retreat in Putrajaya today, he cautioned that ties risked being “poisoned” if maritime and airspace issues were not managed well.
“These are continuing issues because we will always have maritime boundaries with each other.
"We will always have civil aviation needs..."
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong recounted today how he had previously attempted to “turn things around” for bilateral relations with Malaysia.
Speaking after the ninth annual Malaysia-Singapore leaders retreat in Putrajaya today, he cautioned that ties risked being “poisoned” if maritime and airspace issues were not managed well.
“These are continuing issues because we will always have maritime boundaries with each other.
"We will always have civil aviation needs (and) both countries also have a need to agree on arrangements on managing airspace.
“So if it is managed well, then it can be productive for both countries and the whole relationship can prosper.
“If it is not managed well, it can cause a lot of trouble and poison the overall relationship,” he said when asked during a joint press conference with Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Lee shared how he previously had concerns that the island state’s relationship with Malaysia was “not going in the right direction”.
This prompted him to send a delegation comprising Singapore's Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and Finance Minister Heng Swe Keat to personally deliver a letter to Mahathir last December.
“And I’m very happy that Dr Mahathir gave them a hearing, took in what they said and took action on the Malaysian side which enabled our ministers to meet their ministers and to turn things around gradually to bring (us) to where we are today,” he said.
Moving forward, Lee said he was confident that Malaysia and Singapore would continue to build on the progress they have made.
“[...] We have tremendous potential for us to move ahead in a co-operative and mutually beneficial way.
“Provided we work on the relationship and understand where we get the best satay,” he jested.
‘We are always on talking terms’
Mahathir, meanwhile, commented that bilateral ties had always been good, despite “problems”.
“At least we are always on talking terms. And when we have problems, we air our problems sometimes publicly, sometimes privately.
“What we have not done is, we have not confronted each other or even decided we have to resolve our problems through violent actions like going to war with Singapore,” he said to an earlier question.
Earlier, both PMs were satisfied that the Instrument Landing System issue was resolved. Singapore agreed to withdraw it while Malaysia promised to suspend its restriction imposed earlier over Pasir Gudang.
As for overlapping maritime boundaries, Malaysia has agreed to suspend the implementation of the Johor Bahru port limits off Tanjung Piai while Singapore will suspend its port limits off Tuas.
Next, the two countries will form a new committee to discuss the maritime boundary delimitation in the area.
On the KL-Singapore High Speed Rail, Mahathir said Malaysia will continue to explore ways to reduce costs before the project suspension period expires on May 31, 2020.
The two countries further agreed to suspend the Johor Bahru-Singapore Railway Transit System Link so that Malaysia could explore cheaper alternatives.
However, they appeared to have come to a stalemate with regards to the 1962 Johore River Water Agreement, and mulled settling the dispute through arbitration.
Mahathir said Malaysia wants to review water prices but Singapore’s Lee maintained that terms of the agreement could not be changed. The countries will continue to deliberate on this matter.
The Singaporean ministers who attended the two-day retreat were Teo; Heng; Transport Minister and Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure Khaw Boon Wan; Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan; Communications, Information and Trade Relations Minister S Iswaran; Culture, Community and Youth Minister Grace Fu; Environment and Water Minister Masagos Zulkifli; National Development Minister Lawrence Wong; and Trade, Industry and Public Service Minister Chan Chun Sing.
The Malaysian ministers present were Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah; Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali; Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin; Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng; Transport Minister Anthony Loke; Energy, Science Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin; and Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
