More talks needed to 'expedite' Bintan, Batam travel bubble, as Singapore seeks more VTLs with Indonesia: PM Lee

BINTAN (Indonesia) — More discussions are needed between Singapore and Indonesia in order to "expedite" a two-way travel bubble with Batam and Bintan, so that visitors may travel between the two Indonesian islands and Singapore without the need for quarantine, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Tuesday (Jan 25).
 
At the same time, Singapore has proposed to Indonesia a bilateral vaccinated travel lane arrangement for more destinations in Indonesia beyond the two resort islands, which are close to Singapore.

Mr Lee is in Bintan for a leaders’ retreat with Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
 
Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Mr Joko, Mr Lee noted that Singapore has “taken the step” with a vaccinated travel lane for Jakarta, and Indonesia has done likewise with Batam and Bintan.
 
At the retreat, Mr Lee said that the Indonesian side expressed its desire to attract more visitors to Batam and Bintan with the travel bubble.
 
“We would like to go further with that, and the Indonesians would also like to go further with their proposals,” he said in response to a question from TODAY.
 
On Monday, Indonesia announced a quarantine-free travel corridor that allows people from Singapore to travel to the two Indonesian islands that are popular among holidaymakers. They will be allowed to visit only Nongsa resort in Batam and Lagoi resort in Bintan.

Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno in a virtual press conference that visitors are not allowed to leave these resorts for other places.

The travel corridor, which began on Monday, is unilateral, which means that it will not apply to Indonesians heading to Singapore.
 
As part of the travel bubble, travellers must test negative for Covid-19 72 hours before departure and again upon arrival at Batam’s Nongsapura ferry terminal or Bintan’s Bandar Bentan Telani terminal. 
 
On Tuesday, Mr Joko said that Singapore and Indonesia are in the process of finalising cooperation on vaccine recognition, as well as to ensure their platforms for tracking and protecting individuals against the coronavirus can work alongside each other.
 
Mr Lee noted that Singapore’s Covid-19 statistics are now higher than Indonesia’s, and that it is natural for them to be concerned. 
 
“But sometimes, our Covid numbers are low, and their Covid numbers are higher than ours, which has happened, and then we are concerned about them. So for both sides to be comfortable to open up at the same time, it's not easy,” Mr Lee said.
 
Likewise, Singapore’s proposal for a bilateral vaccinated travel lane covering more destinations in Indonesia will also depend on the Covid-19 situation in both countries.
 
He added: “(We) may not be ready to implement it yet, but let's discuss it so when the conditions are suitable, we are able to. And (the Indonesians) are prepared to talk.” 
 
As for Indonesia’s hopes for the Batam and Bintan travel bubble to be a success, Mr Lee said that Singapore will discuss it, with the involvement of the transport ministers on both sides, “to see how we can expedite things”.