KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's naval and air forces will monitor any foreign naval vessels detected in Malaysian waters, says Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (pic).
He said diplomatic protest notes would also be sent to the respective countries if their vessels did not follow the right maritime routes.
"The presence of navy vessels or normal ships are not deemed as intrusion in our waters.
"The presence of these ships are outside 12 nautical miles from Malaysian shores," Hishammuddin said in a written response from Ng Wei Aik (DAP-Tanjong) in Parliament.
Ng had asked the Defence Ministry to state the number of intrusions of warships from China and other countries in Malaysian waters over the past five years, and the actions taken by the armed forces to defend the sovereignty of the country.
Hishammuddin said over the past five years, there had been 83 vessels from China and 74 from other countries that were detected outside the 12 nautical miles from Malaysian waters.
These vessels, said Hishammuddin, were duly monitored by the Navy.
Last Friday, it was reported that the Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia, Dr Huang Huikang, was called in by the Foreign Ministry following reports that a large number of Chinese-flagged fishing vessels were sighted in Malaysian waters.
The ministry, in a statement said it had called up Dr Huang last Thursday to seek clarification and to register Malaysia's concern over the issue.
Wisma Putra said based on reports received from relevant authorities, the fishing boats were accompanied by Chinese coast guard vessels while in Malaysia's maritime areas in the South China Sea.
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