KL, S’PORE SUSPEND NEW PORT LIMITS
Malaysia, city state revert to their port limits in effect last year
MALAYSIA and Singapore have mutually suspended the implementation of their overlapping port limits in the waters of the Straits of Johor.
Both countries have since also applied their port limits which were in effect prior to Oct 25 and Dec 6 last year respectively.
“At 0001hrs on 8 April 2019, Malaysia and Singapore have mutually suspended the implementation of their overlapping port limits and applied their port limits in effect prior to Oct 25 and Dec 6 last year respectively,” said a Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore spokesman yesterday.
The spokesman said the suspension was pursuant to one of the five recommendations in the report of the working group on maritime issues surrounding the overlapping Johor Baru Port Limits off Tanjung Piai and Singapore Port Limits off Tuas.
This move was agreed upon by the foreign ministers of Singapore and Malaysia on March 14, to de-escalate the situation and pave the way for maritime boundary delimitation, he said.
The two countries had been embroiled in a dispute after Malaysia unilaterally extended the Johor Baru Port limits last October over Singapore’s territorial waters off Tuas.
Singapore responded by extending its port limits too.
However, the March 14 meeting sought to de-escalate the situation on the ground,
The other four recommendations relating to the maritime issues agreed in the meeting by Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah and his Singapore counterpart, Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, are:
TO not authorise and to suspend all commercial activities in the area;
TO not anchor government vessels in the area;
FOR Malaysia and Singapore vessels to operate in the area in accordance with international law including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The relevant agencies on both sides will work out practical modalities to avoid untoward incidents in the area; and,
TO establish a committee chaired by the Malaysian Foreign Ministry’s secretary-general and Singapore Foreign Affairs Ministry’s permanent secretary, who will ensure the execution of the first four recommendations within one month, and that negotiations for maritime boundary delimitation in the area begin within one month following such an implementation.