Malaysia proposes meeting Singapore on airspace, maritime issues

Malaysia has proposed to convene a meeting with Singapore to discuss airspace and outstanding maritime boundary issues.

The meeting would also inform contacts between the transport ministers from both countries to resolve the Instrument Landing System (ILS) issues, Wisma Putra said in a statement late yesterday.

“The government of Malaysia today communicated to the government of Singapore on two protest notes, through the Singaporean High Commissioner to Malaysia. The first concerned Singapore’s publication of the ILS and ILS Approach Procedures for Seletar Airport (photo, above) on Dec 1, 2018.

“The second relates to the outstanding maritime boundary delimitation issues between Malaysia and Singapore, including the new Johor Bahru port limits and the recent incidents in relation to it,” according to the statement.

The issues were raised after Singapore had broadcast its ILS and ILS Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP) on Dec 1 without the agreement of Malaysia.

The republic also claimed that Malaysia had recently purported to extend the Johor Baru port limits in a manner that encroaches into Singapore Territorial Waters (STW) off Tuas.

The statement also affirmed that the new Johor Baru port limits were within Malaysia’s territorial sea.

It is well within the government of Malaysia’s right to draw any port limit in its territorial sea in accordance with Malaysia’s own national laws. As such, the government of Malaysia refutes the view that Malaysia’s government vessels had intruded into Singapore territorial waters off Tuas, Wisma Putra said.

Malaysia is confident that both countries acknowledge and value the good and strong bilateral relations as such sentiments were expressed most recently by the prime ministers of both countries during Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s official visit to Singapore last November.

“For this reason, it is important to avoid any act which may lead to escalation and fuel tension,” the statement said.

- Bernama