Malaysia and Singapore grapple with water dispute
Malaysia and Singapore grapple with water dispute
Barani Krishnan
Reuters
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia and Singapore began talks on Monday to try to seal a
tricky deal on water supply for Singapore, the thorniest
bilateral issue between the two neighbors.
The water disagreement has muddied negotiations over other
problems such as the use of Malaysian airspace by Singapore air
force fighters.
Singapore's Foreign Minister S. Jayakumar set the tone for the
when he said a mutually satisfying deal was needed, but that
progress was not possible without compromise.
"We must conduct our discussions on the basis that nothing is
settled until everything is settled," he said before the talks
got underway at Putrajaya, the Malaysian government's new
administrative center just south of Kuala Lumpur.
"It will not be easy, but I firmly believe it is possible to
reach an agreement provided that there is the political will and
mutual goodwill on both sides," Jayakumar added.
His host and counterpart Syed Hamid Albar had similar advice
for the Singaporeans.
"The greatest challenge before us is not to outdo one another.
This is not an exercise in one upmanship," the Malaysian foreign
minister said in a statement obtained by media.
"Water is a resource that Malaysia values but has always been
willing to share with its neighbor Singapore. All of us realize
it is a scarce commodity that we have to manage well," he added.
The main agenda for the two-day meeting will be a discussion
on Malaysia's formula for fixing the price of both raw and
treated water drawn from Malaysia's southern state of Johor.
The formula, yet to be made public, was proposed by Prime
Minister Mahathir Mohamad to Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kuan
Yew in March after earlier talks made little headway.
Syed Hamid Albar has said that if a deal on water could be
reached, other bilateral disputes could be resolved as a package.
He said a news conference could be held by Tuesday noon if an
agreement was concluded.
Singapore now pays three Malaysian cents (less than one U.S.
cent) for every thousand gallons of raw water piped from Johor.
It has offered to pay 45 Malaysian cents when a supply
agreement runs out in 2011 and 60 cents after 2061, with
adjustments every five years.
Malaysia provides about half of Singapore's water needs. The
agreement expiring 2011 stipulates the island can draw 88
millions gallons daily (mgd) from Johor while the one ending 2061
allows another 50 mgd.