KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 23 — Former Singapore prime minister Goh Chok Tong urged Malaysia and Singapore to react calmly as the two South-east Asian neighbours lock horns over their maritime borders.
Goh cited a previous maritime dispute over claims for the island of Pedra Branca and how the administration at that time handled the matter.
The Straits Times (ST) reported that Goh during a speech at a book festival in Singapore said the maritime authorities under his reign, could have resorted to more heavy-handed approach by pointing guns to its Malaysian naval authorities and force them out of Pedra Branca and its surrounding waters.
However, he noted that this would have resulted in a “very, very serious conflict.”
“They sent their ships into waters which were under our jurisdiction for decades. The Malaysians were making a point. They were also claiming the waters. In fact, they were claiming Pedra Branca and other islands around there. So they were making a point that the waters were theirs,” Goh reportedly said.
He said Singapore could have opted to “point our guns at them and say ‘you get out or I’ll shoot’.”
“But that would start a very very serious conflict. So we decided that we leave the boats alone, just circle around them to tell them that the waters are ours, and the dispute should be referred to international tribunal or arbitration,” Goh was quoted saying.
As for the current dispute, Goh said “importantly, we are reacting calmly, they are reacting calmly.”
Malay Mail had on December 16, reported that the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) had sent a patrol ship into Johor Baru’s new port limits several times earlier that week, after Putrajaya’s offer to de-escalate the standoff in the contested waters off Johor.
According to a source familiar with the situation there, RSN’s RSS Unity — a 1,250-tonne Independence-class littoral mission vessel (LMV) fitted with at least a 76mm gun and anti-air missile system — was spotted there.
The only Malaysian ships in the waters were the anchored MV Polaris, a Malaysia Marine Department (MMD) civilian vessel providing safety of navigation, usually by laying buoys to mark territory or safety hazards, along with a patrolling Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) vessel.
The sightings of the Singaporean military vessel followed Malaysia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry saying it will take measures to de-escalate the situation with Singapore, ahead of a proposed bilateral talk next month.
Malaysia has proposed to Singapore a mutual cease and desist from sending any assets into the disputed area by December 9. The proposal was rejected by Singapore.
Last week, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Malaysian vessels will remain in the disputed waters along the Malaysia-Singapore maritime border and will stay there until the negotiation process between the two countries is settled.
Singapore’s High Commission later said that the republic’s security agencies have been “exercising restraint” in enforcing its territorial waters, amid reports of its Navy vessels spotted within the new Johor Baru Port limits.
