“NO TALK OF PEACE WITH INDONESIA”

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31041, 22 April 1966, Page 12

“NO TALK OF PEACE WITH INDONESIA”

(N.Z.P.A. Reuter—Copyright)

KUALA LUMPUR, April 21. The Malaysian Acting-Prime Minister, Tun Abdul Razak, said today that there could be no talk of peace with Indonesia until Malaysia had “the confidence of Indonesia’s desire and sincerity for peace.”

Indonesia, he said, had announced that it would intensify confrontation and send more troops to the Malaysian border. “You can't have peace and more troops being dispatched to our doorstep,” he said. He was referring to a statement made by the Indonesian Foreign Minister, Dr. Adam Malik, that the “door was open” for peace talks with Malaysia. Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Toh Chin Chye, announced today that Singapore would not take retaliatory action after Malaysia’s decision to impose restrictions on people entering Malaysia from '’ingapore “This is too serious a matter for us to treat it as

a game of ping-pong,” he told the Singapore Parliament.

“It would be childish to answer every Malaysian ping with a pong,” he added. Dr. Toh said Singapore had no intention of allowing itself to be used as a base to confront Malaysia. The Singapore Government had so far had no official contacts with the Indonesian Government after Indonesia’s reported intention to recognise Singapore. Dr. Toh said he hoped Sin-

gapore’s good intentions towards the people of Malaysia and the Malaysian Government would be clear by its acceptance of an invitation from the Malaysian Government to attend a meeting on mutual defence and economic co-operation on May 9. Dr. Toh assured the Malaysian Government that the question of Indonesia setting up a diplomatic mission in Singapore would only be decided after consultation with Malaysia.