Singapore, Malaysia claim victory in sea dispute
Singapore, Malaysia claim victory in sea dispute
Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia and Singapore both claimed victory on Thursday after a United Nations court ruling in a dispute over land-reclamation work in waters between the two nations.
Malaysia had asked the Hamburg-based International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to order Singapore to stop its work pending arbitration.
The tribunal said on Wednesday that Singapore could continue, but emphasized that it should ensure the projects had no irreparable effects on Malaysia's rights or the environment.
The court also ruled that the neighbors should appoint a panel of independent experts to examine the reclamation work.
"The decision supports Singapore's position that there was no need for Singapore to stop its reclamation works either at Tuas or Tekong," Singapore's ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement.
"It upholds the position which Singapore has maintained all along: i.e. that Singapore's reclamation works, which are carried out strictly within its territorial waters, are in full compliance with international law."
Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar also hailed the decision as a victory for Malaysia.
"It is a great success and now Singapore cannot brush us aside and say that Malaysia has no case," he told reporters on Thursday.
Syed Hamid said Malaysia had achieved what it wanted, namely, to be informed and consulted on the land reclamation projects.
He acknowledged that the tribunal had not ordered Singapore to stop the work.
"But they must bear in mind that anything they do, if the court finds that they have done irreparable damage to Malaysia's interest or affected its marine life and environment in and around the Straits of Johor, they have to answer for it."
Singapore's foreign affairs ministry said a five-person arbitration tribunal would be set up on Thursday to continue hearing the dispute.
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, however, repeated his call for Singapore to stop the projects immediately.
"If they continue with their work, it will be too late. By the time we have a final decision, the reclamation might have done permanent damage," Mahathir told reporters.
Malaysia had claimed Singapore's reclamation off the Tuas peninsula in the west violated its territorial waters while the work off Pulau Tekong island in the east was damaging Malaysia's beaches and fisheries.
Malaysian officials have also said the project could obstruct ships headed for ports in Malaysia's southern state of Johor, which are being promoted to rival Singapore's port.
The distance between Tekong and Malaysia's Pularek naval training base at Tanjong Pengelih has been reduced to 0.75 kilometers (half a mile) from 1.8 kilometers due to reclamation work in the area, Malaysia's The Star newspaper said.
The long history of disputes between Singapore and Malaysia dates back to 1965, when the city-state was kicked out of the Malaysian Federation and became an independent nation.
Tension lingers over issues such as the price of water Malaysia supplies to Singapore, a prospective bridge linking the countries, the use of Malaysian airspace by Singaporean aircraft and ownership of a rocky islet.