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Joseph Sipalan

Malaysia will continue its oil exploration in the South China Sea, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said, as his government launches a probe into the source of a leaked protest note sent to the country’s embassy in Beijing by China’s foreign ministry.
Last week, Philippine news outlet The Inquirer published pictures of a two-page note, as part of a story on Beijing’s assertion that Malaysia’s oil and gas exploration activities in the contested waters had infringed on China’s territory.
Anwar said on Thursday Malaysia had no intention of being “provocative (or) unnecessarily hostile” to China, but maintained that it had operated well within its territory.
“We never dismissed the possibility for discussions, but it does not mean we have to stop activities in our territory,” he told a press conference with Malaysian journalists during a visit to Russia.
Anwar was on his maiden trip to Russia to get Moscow’s support for Malaysia’s membership application to Brics, a grouping of developing nations.


Malaysia’s foreign ministry in a statement on Wednesday said it would file a police report and conduct an internal investigation into the breach of classified information cited in The Inquirer’s report.
The ministry did not verify the authenticity of the leaked note.
“Malaysia’s stance on the South China Sea remains unchanged. Malaysia will continue to defend its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and interests in its maritime areas,” the ministry said.
Anwar said China was well aware of the discovery of “one or two large oil wells” within Malaysia’s waters, and that Malaysia would continue to pursue dialogue at all levels to discuss their overlapping claims to the resource-rich waterway.
“China is a good friend, but we will have to operate in our waters and secure economic advantage, including drilling for oil in our territory,” he said.
China claims ownership over nearly the entire South China Sea, through which at least US$3 trillion in global trade passes annually.
China’s 10-dash line, which Beijing has marked out on its maps based on historical claims, cuts into the exclusive economic zones of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam, sparking tensions as its Southeast Asian neighbours seek to exploit abundant oil and gas reserves and marine resources off their own coasts.

Since taking high office in 2022, Anwar has actively worked towards strengthening ties with China. Last year, he made at least two official trips to China, and in June this year hosted Chinese Premier Li Qiang to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic ties between the two nations.
China has been Malaysia’s largest trading partner for 15 straight years as of 2023. Total trade grew 9.5 per cent annually over the first seven months of this year, valued at 275.8 billion ringgit (US$58.2 billion).
The two nations, however, have had differences over the South China Sea, with Malaysia having sent out diplomatic protests as recently as 2021 over the presence of Chinese vessels in its waters. In 2016, China’s foreign ministry said it was “fishing season” in response to a media blitz by Malaysia after a fleet of 100 Chinese fishing trawlers was discovered in its exclusive economic zone.
Addressing the East Economic Forum later in the day, Anwar said Malaysia viewed Brics as an important platform to leverage on the growing importance of the Global South, which currently accounts for 40 per cent of global economic output and home to 85 per cent of the world’s population.
Brics comprises founder members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, as well as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.
During a bilateral meeting on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin extended Russia’s invitation as this year’s Brics chair to Malaysia to attend the bloc’s annual summit in the Russian city of Kazan in October.


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Anwar says Malaysia has operated well within its territory, as it investigates source of leaked protest note sent by China’s foreign ministry


Anwar says Malaysia has operated well within its territory, as it investigates source of leaked protest note sent by China’s foreign ministry.
