I kept up a bold front, asking him whether he had instructions from his government to extend recognition to Singapore.

Of course he had not -- there had not been time. Inwardly, I was sorry to have repaid his unremitting efforts to keep Malaysia on track by concealing from him any hint of the impending separation.

But I had had no choice. When the news reached London, Harold Wilson was on holiday in the Scilly Isles and Arthur Bottomley, secretary of state for Commonwealth Relations, was in West Africa. The foreign secretary, Michael Stewart, flew to the Scillies for discussions with Wilson, and on Aug 10, I received the following message from Wilson through the acting deputy British high commissioner in Singapore:

"I wanted to let you know that we have decided to recognise Singapore as an independent state right away, and that we are announcing this in tomorrow morning's papers.

"I have seen your message and I much appreciate your kind words. I am glad to know that you want to work on terms of friendship with us. I must say that I was disappointed that we were not consulted before this important step was taken, because, of course, it has major implications for us.

"We are now thinking very urgently about these. But you may be sure that we wish you well. I am concerned that Sukarno may try to use this development for his own ends. I am sure you will agree that we must all be careful to avoid anything which might help him to make capital out of it."

Wilson's decision had been swift, and once the British government recognised our independence I was confident that we would not have any difficulty in winning international acceptance.

But feelings abroad were divided along Cold War lines. While there was jubilation in Jakarta, Moscow and Beijing, there was deep disappointment and anxiety in Britain, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and the West in general.