All 3 pacts to take effect together; Changi's hub role assured: SM Teo

Singapore and Indonesia have undertaken to have all three bilateral agreements come into force simultaneously for good reason - negotiations on the pacts were conducted concurrently and a good balance of benefits was achieved across all three agreements, Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean said yesterday.

Responding in Parliament to a follow-up question by Mr Vikram Nair (Sembawang GRC), Mr Teo said both countries agreed the best way to resolve the three outstanding issues was to discuss them together, come to agreement on them at the same time, and then bring them into force concurrently.

Doing so resolves the three issues at the same time, and would bring many benefits to both countries while reducing any chance of misunderstandings, said Mr Teo, who is also Coordinating Minister for National Security.

The three agreements signed last month during the Leaders' Retreat deal with airspace management, defence cooperation and an extradition treaty.

For the set of agreements to come into force, they have to be ratified by both countries.

Mr Nair had asked what happens to all three agreements if in the ratification process, only one or two of the agreements get the green light.

In 2007, both countries concluded agreements on defence cooperation and extradition and agreed to implement them simultaneously, but they were not ratified by Indonesia.

Mr Teo yesterday said any negotiation will see each side push for its maximum benefits, but for there to be a good outcome, each side has to look at "the wider interests that come from working together and arriving at an agreement, rather than not having an agreement".

"In these negotiations, both sides took that view that it is actually in our shared interests, in our enlightened self interest, to come to an agreement on these three outstanding issues so that we can progress our bilateral relations on a broader front," he added.

In response to a question by Ms Poh Li San (Sembawang GRC) on how the flight information region (FIR) agreement directly benefits Changi Airport and Singapore, Transport Minister S. Iswaran said the agreement provides assurance for Singapore and Changi's role as an international aviation hub, and the ability for the airport to ensure landings and take-offs at Changi continue to be safe and efficient.

The FIR agreement will see parts of Singapore's FIR that cover Indonesia's airspace realigned to come under Indonesia's FIR. However, Indonesia will delegate the provision of air navigation services for a part of this realigned airspace to Singapore for 25 years, a period that may be extended.

The assurance that Changi Airport will continue to provide air navigation services in the realigned FIRs over this period means Singapore can now focus on a range of investments and initiatives to support the broader aviation sector here, said Mr Iswaran.

"It also means that in our discussion with aviation sector stakeholders, including potential investors and companies who would want to set up operations here, we are now able to give them greater clarity on the matter," he said.

The FIR agreement will also enable the two neighbours to focus on how to operationalise the arrangement, gain familiarity with each other on how to cooperate further, and build both confidence and trust, Mr Iswaran said in reply to a separate question from Mr Saktiandi Supaat (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) on how the agreement can improve bilateral aviation ties.

"As SM Teo made it very clear, we are neighbours; we will be neighbours well beyond 25 years," he said.

"So it's important that at the foundation of our relationship, we have that confidence and trust."