Singapore asks Malaysia to recall vessels from disputed waters

Hanoi (VNA) - Singapore's Foreign Ministry on February 10 said Malaysia should withdraw its ships from disputed waters as they pose a risk to navigation safety at the city-state's port.

The warning came after a Malaysian vessel that had been involved in their border dispute at sea collided with a Greek bulk carrier on February 9.

The ministry said the incident took place "in an area that goes beyond Malaysia's territorial claim of 1979, which Singapore has never recognized."

The presence of the Malaysia vessels clearly poses a threat to safety of navigation in the area, it said.

Earlier on February 9, Malaysia’s Polaris ship, which had been anchored in waters that Singapore claims to be within its Tuas port limit, collided with Greece-registered bulk carrier Piraeus.

Piraeus was on its way from Singapore to its next port of call at Malaysia's Tanjung Pelepas port in southern Johor state when the collision took place.

Malaysia's Foreign Ministry said in a recent statement that the incident happened in Malaysian territorial waters, adding that there has been no report of any injury or oil spill arising from the collision but Malaysia's Marine Department has detained the Greek vessel and crew for preliminary inquiry.

Singapore and Malaysia have been embroiled in a bilateral dispute over airspace and sea boundaries that flared up late last year but their foreign ministers had agreed in talks last month to take steps to ease bilateral tensions.-VNA