Malaysia denies threatening war
Monday 27 January 2003, 18:05PM
Malaysia has denied it had threatened war with neighbouring
Singapore over a series of disputes, dismissing complaints by the
island-state's foreign minister.
"Malaysia has never talked about war. We have never said that we
would go to war," said Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid
Albar.
"In a conflict situation, we would like to negotiate, and if we
cannot agree, we refer it to a third party. That's always been our
approach. We have no intention of declaring war with
anybody."
However, he said, "we are always talking about defending our rights
and sovereignty".
Singapore on Saturday denounced "loose talk of war" by politicians
and the media in Malaysia over a series of bilateral disputes,
calling it irresponsible and dangerous.
Singapore's Foreign Minister S Jayakumar cited a statement by Syed
Hamid who was quoted by the official Bernama news agency on
December 31 as saying that Singapore has only two choices --
compromise or go to war.
He also said that Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, in his
New Year's Day message, had warned that Kuala Lumpur would give a
"bloody nose" to any country that violated its sovereignty.
Jayakumar noted that Malaysian navy and police vessels had
increased their "intrusions" into Singapore territorial waters off
the disputed island of Pedra Branca, which Malaysia calls Batu
Puteh, over the past month.
The two countries have agreed to refer that dispute to the
International Court of Justice in the Hague.
Another irritant is the price of water supplied by Malaysia to the
resource-starved island, and Syed Hamid denounced Singapore's
publication of letters on the subject from Mahathir to former
Singaporean prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.
"What are they trying to prove? I think that is lack of good faith.
These letters can be published when writing memoirs or something
like that," Syed Hamid said, adding that the move seemed to mean
Singapore had no intention of finding a solution to the
dispute.
The two sides have had a testy relationship since Singapore was
expelled from the Malaysian Federation and gained independence in
1965.
Other disputes include a proposed new bridge linking the two
countries, the use of Malaysian airspace by Singaporean aircraft
and the location of Malaysia's customs, immigration and quarantine
facilities in Singapore.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/01/27/1043533999188.html
