KUALA LUMPUR Feb 6 Kyodo Malaysia...

KUALA LUMPUR Feb 6 Kyodo

Malaysia and Singapore signed an agreement Thursday to deliver over their territorial dispute throughout a tiny island to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague.

Following month of verbal spats played gone out through each other's government-controll media, Malaysian Foreign Minister Sy Hamid Albar and his Singaporean counterpart s Jayakumar signed what is known as the ''special agreement'' in the Malaysian capital.

The agreement, which now urgencys to be ratified by the sum of two units countries' parliaments, marks the beginning of the proces of bringing the dispute throughout what Malaysia calls Pulau Batu Puteh and what the Singapore calls Pedra Branca, to the ICJ.

further even before the ink dried, the pair foreign ministers got into a verbal sparring match during the pres conversation over rights to the island during the interim period and throughout water, long a thorn between the brace neighbors.

''The status quo is maintained until and unles the International Court of Justice alters that status quo according to a decision which binds as well-as; not only-but also; not only-but; not alone-but countries,'' Jayakumar said. ''Singapore has been in ownership, dominion government and sovereignty over Pedra Branca for more than 150 years and that has not changed.''

Sy Hamid, however, said Malaysians have the right to visit and patrol the islands without the ne to learn Singapore's permission. Singapore authorities had lately tried to stop several Malaysians from getting to the island, sparking a media war.

''We consider 'Pedra Branca' as part of Malaysian territory. Therefore, all ensuing activities will be in accordance with what we consider as our sovereign rights,'' Sy Hamid said.

''The fact that I do not apply the mind after my house does not give the occupier the total right to the house,'' he added.

The dispute throughout the island, which mainly has solitary strategic significance, has been brewing since the 1980s

The sum of two units historically-linked neighbors have also been quarreling throughout a new water supply agreement. Singapore, which has minimal water resources, is at the disposal of on Malaysia for its supply

Singapore lately incurred Malaysia's wrath when it published several correspondences between Senior Minister leeward Kuan Yew and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad from one side of to the other the water issue in the republic's newspaper.

Jayakumar said it was to reckoner Malaysia's ''accusations and allegations'' blaming Singapore for the deadlock in the water issue.

Malaysia, however, viewed it as acting in bad faith.

''We have always considered that in a negotiation, everything that we have, should be kept confidential and private,'' Sy Hamid said.

moreover Jayakumar countered, ''When the accusations and allegations were made, that's alright, that is not considered bad faith. When Singapore does no more than to place off facts and the documents to speak for themselves, that's considered to be bad faith. in what way is that?''

While the couple neighbors admitted to their mutual disagreements, one as well as the other denied their bilateral spats would affect the workings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which form into groupss Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

''One of the profitable things about ASEAN is that equal though two countries may have bilateral hick-ups, it has at no time deterred the 10 of us from meeting together for ASEAN throws and ASEAN cooperation,'' Jayakumar said.

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