Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said in an interview with CNA that he did not feel it was possible to open the borders with no restrictions or tests.

“I think that would be unwise. But we can open up in steps, have the appropriate measures to test people, contact trace people because when you open up, your risk (of infection) will inevitably increase.”

Putrajaya recently announced that foreigners from green zone countries could enter the country subject to an agreement on standard operating procedures by Malaysia and the countries in question.

So far, six green zone countries have been identified: Singapore, Brunei, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.

Balakrishnan said he would “hesitate to put a timeline” on when travel between Singapore and Malaysia could resume.

“We have to work out those protocols and make sure those protocols are effective on both sides of the causeway. So just give us a few, I would say, days to weeks,” he said, adding that public health was the main consideration.

“We need to protect the public health of both Singapore and Malaysia, and we need to understand that the world’s busiest land crossing is between Johor and Singapore, so we have to work out a lot of details.”

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