Remain calm and united, Heng Swee Keat urges S’poreans as maritime standoff with Malaysia continues

SINGAPORE — Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat has urged Singaporeans to “remain calm and united” as the maritime dispute with Malaysia remained unresolved.

Joining other ministers who have denounced intrusions by Malaysian government vessels into Singapore territorial waters as a "violation of Singapore’s sovereignty and international law", Mr Heng said in a Facebook post on Sunday (Dec 9) night: “I urge Malaysia to cease these intrusions to avoid escalating tensions.”

“We will not hesitate to take firm actions to protect Singapore's sovereignty and territory,” he added.

Mr Heng’s comments come a day after Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing warned that the situation on the ground was “tense”.

Mr Chan said: “The ships are in close proximity to one another and we know that some are armed. So the risk of escalation cannot be underestimated. Accidents can happen.”

He told reporters on Saturday that Singapore had sent a third-party note to the High Commission of Malaysia, calling for a return to the pre-Oct 25 status quo, adding that the Republic welcomed talks between both sides but was also prepared to put the issue to third-party dispute settlement if talks "do not eventually produce an amicable resolution". 

The third-party note was in response to a proposal by Malaysia on Friday calling on both sides to not send assets to the waters west of Tuas.

Singapore rejected the proposal. On Friday night, Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said Singapore remains ready to discuss this issue with Malaysia "in a constructive manner in the spirit of preserving our important bilateral relationship".

In his post on Sunday night, Mr Heng said that as Singapore’s closest neighbour, “we have close people-to-people ties” and the Republic seeks close cooperation with Malaysia.

“I hope that Singapore and Malaysia discuss issues constructively and peacefully, in compliance with international law. This will benefit peoples of both countries,” he said.

“I trust Singaporeans will remain calm and united at a time like this,” he added.

The Singapore Government revealed last week that Malaysia had unilaterally extended the Johor Baru port limits on Oct 25, thereby violating sovereignty and international laws, and it strongly protested the purported move.

It also revealed that ships and vessels from Malaysia have been repeatedly intruding into Singapore’s territorial waters over the past two weeks, including vessels from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency and Marine Department Malaysia.

According to website MarineTraffic.com, which provides information on the locations and movements of ships, Malaysian government vessel Polaris was still anchored in Singapore waters off Tuas as of Monday (Dec 10) morning.