Singapore denies meeting Azmin Ali over HSR, media reports

Azmin had said he had a “positive meeting” with Singapore officials when he went to the city-state recently to visit Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who was undergoing medical treatment there.

(The Star) – The Singapore government has denied meeting with Economic Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali (pic) on the high-speed rail project over the weekend, TodayOnline reported on Tuesday (Aug 7).

A spokesperson from the island-republic’s Ministry of Transport (MOT) told the portal that no meeting has been scheduled, “nor has taken place between Mr Azmin and Singapore officials overseeing the HSR project”.

“As of Aug 6, 2018, the Malaysian Government has not provided the clarifications sought by Singapore and has not communicated their proposed dates for such discussions,” the spokesperson added.

Azmin had said he had a “positive meeting” with Singapore officials when he went to the city-state recently to visit Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who was undergoing medical treatment there.

“I took that opportunity to meet some senior officials in Singapore to discuss the HSR (High-Speed Rail) project, but I will issue a statement to that effect at some point.

“The meeting was very positive,” he said at the Parliament lobby on Monday (Aug 6).

Last week, the Singapore government said it had received a letter from Azmin dated July 23, stating that the government was studying the details of the HSR project and will commence discussions with the republic soon.

It further said that if the Malaysian Government wished to meet to discuss the project, discussions should have taken place by July 31.

“As of Aug 1, 2018, Malaysia has not proposed a meeting date,” Singapore’s Ministry of Transport said in a statement issued on Aug 1.

The HSR is a 350km railway linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and is expected to start operations from 2026.