opinion As a geographically small but affluent city-state predominated by ethnic Chinese, Singapore understandably and legitimately feels itself vulnerable, especially after the outbreak of the '97 Asian financial crisis, in a geopolitical environment always defined by larger and more populous neighbours, such as Malaysia and Indonesia.

For this reason and paramount consideration, Singapore has always been very careful in the conduct of its foreign policies and farsighted in its defence policy planning.

For example, Singapore delayed for many years the establishment of diplomatic relationship with the communist People's Republic of China because it did not want to be mis-perceived or stereotyped by some quarters in the region during the Cold War years.

Singapore only established formal diplomatic relationship with China on Oct 3, 1990 after Malaysia and Indonesia first did, on May 31, 1974 and Aug 8, 1990 respectively. Singapore had made a wise decision because impressions and perceptions are as critical as reality or appearance in politics - domestic as well as international.

It seems that even though the Cold War has ended for ten years and Singapore has matured into an independent and sovereign state as well as an prosperous economy, it has never ceased to be actively concerned with the geopolitical environment of the region, especially political developments in Malaysia and Indonesia.

Special relationship

In international politics, this is not only normal and understandable, but also accepted. Indeed, all neighbouring countries or countries with close political, economic and social ties observe and watch each other almost everyday.

It is the job of all governments, in the East as well as the West, South or North, since time immemorial, to secure a favourable external environment for the security, stability and prosperity of their respective countries and peoples.

It means that whether Singapore is governed by the People's Action Party (PAP) or any other party or parties, it has to be concerned with developments in Malaysia and Indonesia. Similarly, whether Malaysia is going to be ruled by the Barisan Nasional or Barisan Alternatif, the government of Malaysia also has to observe and watch the situation in Singapore.

However, because of the geographical proximity and the many historical, personal and other emotive factors between Malaysia and Singapore, the two countries and peoples enjoy a kind of special relationship, similar to that between the United States and United Kingdom.

In the past, some normal bilateral disagreements and disputes between Malaysia and Singapore have occasionally turned into emotional polemics and shouting matches.

But thanks to the good sense of some of the top leaders in both countries, as well as to the good offices and facilities provided by our common friends and allies, many such emotional outbursts were contained.

As the leadership, both ruling and opposition, in both countries have been undergoing a generational shift, we may reasonably expect that the historical-personal factors affecting the relationship between the two countries will slowly but surely be reduced.

Full stomach

However, it must be pointed out that Singapore's senior minister Lee Kuan Yew sometimes needs more subtle and wiser skills in communicating his personal ideas and private opinions on regional and international relations so as not to cause unnecessary trouble and ill-feeling between Singapore and other countries or groups in other countries.

For example, it was not very wise for Lee to describe Johor Baru as a place 'rife with car-jacking and criminals' a few years ago, in a court affidavit he submitted in Singapore when suing opposition leader, Tang Liong Hoong for libel and defamation.

Legalistically and logically, it could be argued that it was a private opinion expressed by an individual within Singapore and had therefore nothing to do with others. However, politics is not courtroom procedure where lawyers and judges deliberate rationally and logically on a full stomach within four-walls equipped with air-conditioners.

A statement like Johor Baru being a place 'rife with car-jacking and criminals', whether right or wrong, privately or publicly expressed, was political and emotional because it was expressed by a senior statesman and heard by many in Malaysia, Singapore and even around the world.

It angered not only Malays and Muslims but also Chinese, Indians and others in the streets of tropical Malaysia. Of course, to the credit of Lee, he finally summoned enough moral courage to delete that statement from his affidavit and say sorry to Malaysia.

Nevertheless, it is still a good lesson for all to distinguish between IQ (intelligence quotient) and EQ (emotional quotient), or smartness and wisdom. Similarly, Malaysian politicians who used to threaten to cut off water supply to Singapore whenever there was a bilateral dispute should also upgrade their emotional quotient.

Of course, Malaysia is not the only country in the region that has suffered emotionally from 'EQ-less' public statements of some Singaporeans. India, Indonesia, the Philippines and even China too, were sometimes lectured from afar on topics and issues ranging from democracy and human rights to culture and public toilets. Imagine leaders from those larger and more populous countries exercising the same right of secularly free speech on Singapore.

Old Singaporean

It seems, however that Lee, at least, has not learnt enough from past mistakes. Recently, he told Singaporeans that if PAS in Malaysia becomes stronger, regional instability would ensue.

For the cheerful cynics in politics, it will probably be laughed off as just another bogey-making exercise as general elections in Singapore approach. External threats - real, imagined or contrived - have always been considered productive vote-fishing for governments.

But that is the politics of Singapore. Only Singaporeans themselves can decide if the threats are real or otherwise, or whether they should adopt a strategy of balance and containment, or engagement and bandwagoning.

What we in Malaysia should be concerned about is our own politics, and the relationship between us and our immediate neighbours, friends and colleagues in our daily lives within Malaysia. Our emotion and judgement should not be influenced by an old Singaporean commenting on others from afar, both physically and emotively.

It is only right for PAS to remain cool and calm. On the contrary, it is Umno which must now clarify if it is supported by 'foreign forces', or inviting 'foreign intervention'. This is, as the great British historian, Edward Gibbon often said in The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, the 'vicissitude of fortune' in human affairs.

JAMES WONG WING ON, chief analyst of Strategic Analysis Malaysia, is a former Member of Parliament (1990-1995) and a former columnist for the Sin Chew Jit Poh Chinese daily. He read political science and economics at the Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. While in Sin Chew, he and a team of journalists won the top awards of Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) for 1998 and 1999.