Singapore envoy hauled up
New Straits Times (27 November 2013)
By Azura Abas And Rozanna Latiff

SPYING ALLEGATIONS: Ministers plan to get to the bottom of claims

KUALA LUMPUR: WISMA Putra yesterday summoned Singapore's High Commissioner Ong Keng Yong to Putrajaya to explain allegations that the city state had been spying on Malaysia on behalf of other nations.

Ong met with the Foreign Affairs Ministry's secretary-general, Datuk Othman Hashim, for about 15 minutes.

Singapore is the third mission to be hauled up by Wisma Putra since whistleblower Edward Snowden's revelation that a grouping of intelligence services, known as "Five Eyes", had been carrying out espionage activities in Malaysia.

Earlier this month, Kuala Lumpur summoned the United States ambassador to Malaysia and Australian High Commissioner, and handed over protest notes in response to Snowden's revelations that the US had 90 electronic surveillance facilities worldwide, including in its mission, here.

The city state was thrust into the spotlight on Monday after Snowden's latest revelations -- that the country's southern neighbour was a key "third party" in providing intelligence on Malaysia to "Five-Eyes" -- were picked up by Australian media group Fairfax Media.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said Malaysia took the allegations seriously and was doing all it could to establish the credibility of the reports, as well as seeking Singapore's explanation over the claims.

He said Malaysia and Singapore enjoyed a good relationship, including in trade and other bilateral exchanges. Muhyiddin added that such espionage activities was something that should not happen.

"If Singapore denies the claims, they should provide information and evidence to back it up.

"We have taken immediate steps to get to the bottom of this. I think this reflects how seriously we view this matter.

"We do not take allegations of espionage lightly, especially when they involve our country," he said.

Speaking after closing the National Cyber Crisis Exercise 2013 (X-MAYA 5) here yesterday, Muhyiddin said Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman was leading talks with Singapore over the matter.

Anifah had said Malaysia was "extremely concerned" about the report of Singapore's alleged involvement in espionage activities against Malaysia.

Muhyiddin earlier launched National Security Council Directive 24: the National Cyber Crisis Management Policy and Mechanism, a document outlining Malaysia's strategy for mitigating and responding to cyber crises and technological failures.

He said the directive was aimed at managing cyber crises covering all stages -- before, during and after the incidents; developing a proactive and uniform approach towards monitoring and dealing with cyber threats; and, establishing guidelines to prepare critical agencies for any cyber threats or attacks.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the ministry was looking into claims of Singapore's role in the spying issue seriously.

He said Singapore had the capability to carry out the kind of intelligence gathering and espionage activities as alleged.

"This is not a new issue. We, too, have that kind of capability, but we do not carry out intelligence gathering that could threaten a neighbouring country's sovereignty or our friends' dignity.

"We have principles and values that form the basis of the sound bilateral relations that we have with our neighbours and friends in the region.

"If the allegation that Singapore had been spying on Malaysia is true, it is a matter that must be viewed seriously. It is unethical and shows a total disregard for the relationship that the country has with Malaysia and the region," he said, adding that Wisma Putra's move to summon the Singapore high commissioner yesterday was the right move and that the ministry would follow up with the Foreign Affairs Ministry on the outcome of the meeting.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Kuala Lumpur had always been prepared to share intelligence with Singapore and that there was no need for it to spy on Malaysia, as alleged.

Documents leaked by Snowden alleged that Singapore's military intelligence helped US and its intelligence partners -- the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand -- tap high-speed fibre-optic cables at 20 locations worldwide.

It was reported that American, British and Australian spy agencies harvested data passing through a major undersea cable, called SEA-ME-WE 3, that is partly owned by SingTel.

SEA-ME-WE 3, which stands for Southeast Asia, Middle East and Western Europe, connects more than 30 countries, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Britain and France.

The undersea cable interception operations were alleged to be part of a global web that, in the words of another leaked National Security Agency planning document, enabled the "Five Eyes" partners to trace "anyone, anywhere, anytime", in what was described as "the golden age" of signals intelligence. The "Five Eyes" term originates from the shorthand for the "AUS/CAN/ NZ/UK/US EYES ONLY" classification level.

Although precise assignments are classified, each member of the alliance takes responsibility for intelligence collection and analysis in different parts of the globe. It is claimed that Australia monitors South and East Asia.

Late yesterday evening, Anifah, in a statement, said Othman had conveyed to Ong Malaysia's deep concern over the alleged spying activities and made clear that they infringed on the country's sovereignty, as well as the privacy of individuals.

Such activities, he added, were "certainly not done among partners and close neighbours like Malaysia and Singapore, when both sides were cultivating mutually beneficial strategic and strong partnerships".

Anifah said the reported spying activities had caused considerable anger and disappointment among Malaysians.

The high commissioner, he said, would convey the necessary clarification sought by Malaysia to the Singapore government and would revert to Wisma Putra at the earliest opportunity.

He said Ong also assured that Singapore had no intention to do any harm to its partners.

"Singapore also values its excellent ties with Malaysia, as evidenced by active collaborations between the two countries in many areas."

Meanwhile, Singapore's Straits Times reported from Indonesia that Jakarta, through its vice-foreign minister, Wardana, had also summoned the city state's ambassador to Indonesia, Anil Kumar Nayar, to clarify reports that his government had assisted Australia and the US in spying on countries in the region.

The meeting, the report said, came as Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he had instructed Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa to clarify with the ambassadors of Singapore and South Korea about reports that their countries had helped Australia and the US in the electronic surveillance of Asian countries.

"In his remarks, Dr Yudhoyono referred to Singapore and South Korea as 'friends', noting that the allegations of their involvement in monitoring undersea communications was not specific to Indonesia, but in Asia," the report said.

The newspaper's correspondent here reported that the Singapore High Commission had denied knowledge of helping the US spy on Malaysia and said it had no interest in harming the friendship between the city state and its neighbour.

It quoted Ong as saying that he had explained to Wisma Putra that he did not have information about the allegations in Australian media that Singapore had helped facilitate US-Australian surveillance in the region, which included spying on Malaysia.

"In response to media inquiries, Mr Ong said he was unable to comment on the media reports and had referred them to the relevant agencies in Singapore.

"He affirmed that Singapore values its good relations with Malaysia," the report said.

Source : http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/singapore-envoy-hauled-up-1.413545