Malaysia – The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim has said the country is ready to discuss the conflict on the South China Sea with Beijing to protect the country’s power utilization measures.
China asserts autonomy over nearly the entire South China Sea – a strategic waterway through which trillions of dollars in trade pass yearly – despite an international court ruling that Beijing’s claim has no legal grounds.
The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei all have extensive claims in the sea, while the United States sends naval vessels through it to claim freedom of helmsman ship in global waters.
Anwar who recently visited Beijing said the “responsive” matter was brought up in a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping as Malaysia’s state energy firm Petronas has its biggest oil platform in the debated area, as well as other exploration projects.
“As a small country, we need the resources, oil, and gas, to continue exploration projects. But if the requirement for this is that there must be discussions, then we are ready to discuss,” Anwar mentioned during a monthly address to staff at the Prime Minister’s Office. However, the prime minister did not give out additional details on the discussion with President Xi.
While maintaining their claims in the South China Sea, Chinese authorities in recent years have increased its expansion of artificial islands, including equipping some with military structures and runways. Chinese ships have also been indicted by other regional governments for crushing their fishing boats.
In 2021, Malaysia called out Beijing’s ambassador to the Southeast Asian country in a rally after Chinese crafts penetrated its marine economic site in the differed sea.
Earlier that year, it scrambled fighter jets to block 16 Chinese military aircraft that emerged off Borneo over the South China Sea.
