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.