Foreign Minister Shunmugam Jayakumar said it was in the national interest of both nations to avoid escalating tensions, warning that the consequences could be "costly" for the Southeast Asian neighbours.

Singapore's desire is to have "good, not strained, relations with Malaysia," he said in parliament which debated the bilateral disagreements, including a dispute over an islet and water supplies.

"There is much that both countries can gain by working together," the veteran diplomat said.

Jayakumar however denounced statements by Malaysian officials referring to war.

"Loose talk of war is irresponsible and dangerous. It whips up emotions that could become difficult to control," he said.

Jayakumar noted that it was in such an atmosphere that Malaysian navy and police vessels increased their "intrusions" into Singapore territorial waters off the disputed island of Pedra Branca, which Malaysia calls Batu Puteh, over the past month.

"Such provocative actions are not only senseless but dangerous. Senseless because both sides have agreed to refer the dispute to the ICJ (International Court of Justice) and such actions cannot affect the decision of the ICJ," he said.

The Malaysian patrols were "dangerous because of the risk of accidents that may not only cause loss of life but also cause serious damage to naval vessels with unforseeable consequences," he said.

"The Malaysian Government would have to bear responsibility for the consequences caused by the aggressive and repeated intrusions of its vessels," he added.

Jayakumar cited a statement by Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar who was quoted by the official Bernama news agency on December 31 as saying that Singapore has only two choices -- compromise or go to war.

He also said that Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, in his New Year's Day message, had warned that Kuala Lumpur will give a "bloody nose" to any country that violates its sovereignty.

While Mahathir did not mention any country when asked by journalists to elaborate, "neither did he categorically rule out Singapore," Jayakumar noted.

"This further encouraged the Malaysian media to play up Singapore's alleged forward defence strategy and link it to Singapore's 'arrogance' in the conduct of its bilateral relations with Malaysia," he said.

On Thursday, Malaysia said Singapore should stop using threatening language over the disputed island and vowed that its naval ships would continue patrolling the surrounding waters despite objections.

On the dispute over whether Malaysia can unilaterally raise the price of water it sells to the resources-starved city-state, Jayakumar said Singapore is prepared to have the dispute resolved through arbitration.

He also denied Singapore had opposed Mahathir's original vision for an East Asian Economic Caucus and clarified its position over proposals to set up a secretariat for the ASEAN plus 3 -- Southeast Asia plus China, Japan and South Korea -- dialogue process in Kuala Lumpur.

Singapore said it had reservations about the Malaysian proposal because of its implications on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and ASEAN Secretariat based in Jakarta.

Indonesia also had similar reservations, he said.

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