By Lydia Lim, Senior Political Correspondent

KUANTAN, MALAYSIA - Singapore investors will put their money in Malaysia only if they can be absolutely sure bilateral cooperation is for the long term, as doors have opened for them in many other countries.

That has been Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's consistent message to the Malaysian leaders he met on his eight-day visit, which ended yesterday.

Mr Lee told reporters he emphasised two points.

First, that the large-scale iconic projects which the Singapore Government had agreed in principle to partner Malaysia on could not get off the ground without private investors.

Second, these private investors would not follow the Singapore Government's lead if they were worried that it would be 'cooperation this year and no cooperation next year, cooperation again year after that'.

The two iconic projects are the Iskandar Malaysia economic corridor and a third bridge between the two countries.

'The Singapore Government cannot do it alone, but investors will not follow us unless they are absolutely sure this is for a long, long time, not just chopping and changing,' Mr Lee said.

He was frank with Malaysian leaders, he said, and told them that Singapore businessmen now have thousands of projects in China, Vietnam, India and the Persian Gulf states.

They are also benefiting from the web of free trade agreements that Singapore has signed with large economies, including the United States, Japan, Australia and India.

If investors see no improvement in bilateral ties, they will keep their businesses where they are rather than take new risks in Malaysia, Mr Lee said.

He cited Malaysia's ban on sand exports to Singapore as an example of how cooperation had not been across the board under former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad.

That makes it difficult for Singapore to take up opportunities, such as the one that the Regent of Pahang, Tengku Abdullah, presented yesterday.

He is keen to dredge the Pahang river to prevent flooding, and Singapore has the expertise for the job. But Singapore cannot take the sand from the river unless the federal government agrees to it, Mr Lee pointed out.

As he criss-crossed the country to meet government, state and opposition leaders, the Minister Mentor also tried to get a sense of the opposition alliance's likely attitude to Singapore, should they take power in future.

In Kelantan, he met the spiritual leader of Islamic-based opposition party Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS). Datuk Nik Aziz Nik Mat assured him that PAS would not discriminate against Singapore's majority non-Muslim population.

Asked what the Malaysian government thought of his visit, Mr Lee said Singapore had kept the federal authorities informed of his itinerary. They provided police escorts all the way.

Mr Lee's last stop was in Kuantan, the capital of Pahang, Prime Minister Najib Razak's home state.

He was hosted to lunch by the Sultan of Pahang, Haji Ahmad Shah, and met Menteri Besar Adnan Yaakob.

He also visited the home of the Regent, Tengku Abdullah, and his wife, Tengku Puan Tungku Azizah, the third daughter of the Sultan of Johor. Mr Lee had attended their wedding 23 years ago.

Mr Lee later said he was confident that the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition would hold the ground in Pahang.

The younger ministers who accompanied Mr Lee on the eight-day trip described it as a great exposure to Malaysian federal, state and opposition leaders.

Education Minister Ng Eng Hen said these leaders' respect for Singapore and for Mr Lee paved the way for frank discussions.

'We get to see, within a very short time, the challenges and aspirations of the Malaysian leadership. So it's an exceedingly worthwhile trip,' Dr Ng said.

At the same time, he said he sensed that the younger generation of leaders on both sides are less connected than those of MM Lee's generation. There is less warmth, less interaction and less of a sense of shared history, he said.

'We have to build these ties. As neighbours, we have to get to know one another, both the leadership and the people,' he added.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary Masagos Zulkifli said that the trip made him reflect on the different paths Malaysia and Singapore took after independence.

It confirmed for him that Singapore had been right to adopt English as the main language of business and education, he said.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.