Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

Singapore and Malaysia will need ‘some time’ to work out details on cross-border travel: MFA

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) reiterated on Saturday (June 20) that Singapore is prepared to work with Malaysia to address the needs of cross-border travel, adding that it would have to include mutually agreed public health protocols to “preserve the public health and safety of citizens on both sides”.

The Foreign Ministry said Singapore is prepared to work with Malaysia to address the needs of cross-border travellers.

The Foreign Ministry said Singapore is prepared to work with Malaysia to address the needs of cross-border travellers.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) reiterated on Saturday (June 20) that Singapore is prepared to work with Malaysia to address the needs of cross-border travel, adding that it would have to include mutually agreed public health protocols to “preserve the public health and safety of citizens on both sides”.

“Both countries will require some time to work out the details on the gradual easing of border restrictions to ensure a stable recovery from the Covid-19 situation,” said a MFA spokesman in response to media queries on Malaysia’s proposal to lift border restrictions between both sides.

On Friday, Malaysia’s Senior Minister Ismail Sabri had said that Malaysia had provisionally decided to grant Singapore and Brunei citizens entry into Malaysia without the need for a mandatory Covid-19 screening and 14-day quarantine upon arrival.

He added this is subject to the same permission granted by Singapore and Brunei to Malaysians, as well as further discussions between the Malaysian Foreign Ministry and its counterparts in the two countries.

Mr Ismail, who is also defence minister, said Malaysia could allow citizens from Singapore and Brunei to enter without prior approval from its Immigration Department because both the two Southeast Asian neighbours are categorised as green zones by the Malaysian Health Ministry.

“The loosening of the border restrictions must be reciprocated and both these countries must allow our citizens to enter without restrictions, as we have allowed,” he added.

“This is being negotiated by our foreign ministry with Singapore’s foreign ministry. They are still discussing … If they agree to our suggestions, we will agree to relax the restrictions and open our borders. So we have to wait and see how the discussions pan out.”

In its statement, the MFA spokesman said: “Singapore has read media reports regarding Malaysia’s decision to lift the quarantine requirement for certain groups of travellers from Singapore and other green zone countries, if they are screened and found to be negative for the Covid-19 virus.

“Singapore is prepared to work with Malaysia to address the needs of cross-border travellers, including short-term business and official travellers, and Singaporeans and Malaysians who were previously commuting between both countries,” it added, reiterating what it had said earlier in June after Mr Ismail had told the media then that Malaysians working in Singapore may soon be able to commute to and from Johor Baru.

"Such bilateral arrangements would have to include mutually agreed public health protocols, to preserve the public health and safety of citizens on both sides,” MFA said on Saturday.

In a separate press conference on Friday, the Malaysian health ministry's director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah said that Malaysia is in the "very early" stages of discussion on the implementation of a “travel bubble” with Singapore and five other countries which have successfully contained the Covid-19 outbreak.

"We need to finalise the standard operating procedures and reach an agreement with the countries on several matters, which has to be mutual and reciprocal,” he said.

"This is to ensure that all countries which enter into the agreement follow the same protocol.”

Earlier this month, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said that measures, safeguards and precautions have to be put in place before travel can resume between Singapore and Malaysia.

“We want to see the resumption of travel, but it has to be done in a safe way. And that would mean looking at testing protocols in place on both sides,” said Mr Wong, who co-chairs Singapore'sCovid-19 multi-ministry task force.

“Measures, safeguards and precautions have to be put in place to ensure the resumption of safe travel between Singapore and Malaysia, so we are discussing all these with our Malaysian counterparts, (including) exactly how many people, what kinds of protocols will be put in place and which industries (will be involved)."

Related topics

Singapore Malaysia Travel Causeway

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.