Muhyiddin suggests talks over S'pore-M'sia boundary dispute

KULAI: Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said yesterday he hopes that Singapore’s dispute with Malaysia over the maritime boundary and airspace can be discussed at the negotiation table.

This is necessary and vital to prevent any unnecessary rivalry between the two countries, he said to reporters after opening the Johor convention of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) here.

“I followed what the Minister of Singapore mentioned a few days ago that they (Singapore) would like to resolve this amicably; so that is a good move. We do not want to spark an unnecessary rivalry that creates a lot of dissatisfaction,” he said.

Muhyiddin was asked to comment on the recent developments in Singapore and Malaysia over a dispute over their maritime boundary and airspace.

He said these issues were discussed seriously by the Cabinet recently.

Muhyiddin said he believes that the minister concerned will do his best to resolve the issues, as per the decision of the Cabinet.

“Singapore-Malaysia relations have been good.

"It is quite normal (to have problems). Even when I was the menteri besar (of Johor), we had problems (too) but the fact is that both countries want to work together,” he said.

In SINGAPORE, the republic’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing, in his first comment on the dispute, said that with the possibility of accidents taking place, the “risk of escalation cannot be underestimated”.

“The ground situation is tense. The ships are in close proximity with one another and we know that some ships are armed, so the risk of escalation cannot be underestimated. Accidents might happen,” Channel NewsAsia quoted him as saying.