Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia and Singapore have agreed to reopen their land borders for fully vaccinated travellers beginning April 1 without the need for them to take Covid-19 pre-departure and arrival tests or be quarantined.
This was stated in a joint statement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, issued by the Prime Minister’s offices of the two countries, Thursday.
Both leaders shared a telephone conversation Thursday, the statement said, adding that they had also agreed that the exemption for quarantine and Covid-19 testing will be applicable to all categories of travellers and types of land transport.
Both also acknowledged that Malaysia and Singapore have shown encouraging progress, particularly in the implementation of their respective Covid-19 vaccination programmes.
They also took note of the progress made in continuing cross-border air and land vaccinated travel lane (VTL) plans.
In the statement, Ismail Sabri said Malaysia will open its borders to foreign travellers beginning April 1, which he said marks another step in efforts being taken to facilitate cross-border travel with neighbouring Singapore.
“Today’s announcement reflects good relations, cooperation in various aspects and strong ties between the people of the two countries. This will definitely contribute to recovery efforts with a positive impact on the economy and wellbeing of the people of both countries,” said Ismail Sabri.
Meanwhile, Lee said Singapore and Malaysia enjoy deep, warm and multi-faceted relations, as well as strong people-to-people ties.
“Today’s announcement is a significant milestone in our transition towards living with COVID-19. It reflects the strong collaboration both sides have enjoyed throughout the pandemic and will help both countries emerge stronger from this crisis,” Lee said.
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