Mahathir says S'pore acted badly

Mahathir says S'pore acted badly

MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Thursday said
Singapore's public release of official correspondence over a
protracted water dispute was not "nice" and showed a lack of
faith by the island-state.

On Saturday, the Singapore government released 19 letters the
two sides have exchanged over Malaysia's demand for higher prices
for water it supplies to Singapore.

The water issue has proven a sore point in diplomatic ties
between the two neighbors, who also are involved in a spat over
competing claims on the islet of Pulau Batu Puteh in the shipping
lanes of the Singapore Straits.

Singapore Foreign Minister Shanmugam Jayakumar told Parliament
on Saturday that the letters were released in response to
misinformation spread by Malaysia about the water dispute.
Mahathir said the release of the letters reflected badly on
Singapore's sincerity in resolving the dispute. --AP