M’sia hasn’t signed off interest in Sulawesi sea

Clearing the air: Zambry speaking to the media during the press briefing at Wisma Putra in Putrajaya. — Bernama

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia has not “signed off” its interest in the Sulawesi Sea and any allegation suggesting this is irresponsible, says Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.

“Such allegations are unfounded. It gives a bad impression of the government. It is deeply saddening when crucial issues concerning sovereignty are manipulated in such a way to seek and gain political support.

“We must not politicise the issue of our sovereignty,” he said at a press briefing yesterday.

During President Joko Widodo’s visit recently, Malaysia and Indonesia had, among others, signed the Treaty Relating to the Territorial Sea Delimitation of the Two Countries in the Southernmost Part of the Malacca Strait and another treaty on the Sulawesi Sea.

Following this, several Opposition leaders had called for the Prime Minister to provide details of the Sulawesi Sea Treaty and explain whether it involves areas known as Ambalat Block or what Malaysia refers to as Block ND6 and Block ND7.

The Prime Minister had told the Dewan Rakyat that the two treaties signed with Indonesia, which demarcated parts of the two countries’ maritime borders, are in accordance with the law and were only signed after consultations were made with government agencies.

Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim stressed that the treaties do not involve territories that are still in dispute.

Wisma Putra also explained that the Sulawesi Sea Treaty does not involve maritime boundary delimitation in the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf between Malaysia and Indonesia.

“In other words, the treaty does not cover the areas referred to by Malaysia as Block ND6 and Block ND7, or referred to by Indonesia as Ambalat.

“Therefore, the claims made by certain parties are unfounded,” it said.

Zambry said discussions with Indonesia have not reached this part. He said the signed treaties had been worked on since 2005 and were completed in 2018.

“The challenge in firming up the treaties was the need to defend the sovereignty of the country.

“Obviously, we want to defend our territory and that is why it took a long time to complete it. We do not compromise,” he said.

Zambry said the treaties, including the one on the Sulawesi Sea, would provide clarity in terms of sovereignty and jurisdiction.

“This will allow us to carry out activities such as maritime enforcement effectively, prevent cross-border crime and stop the smuggling of goods and human trafficking,” he said.

“The demarcation of both treaties represents a milestone for Malaysia and Indonesia. It is the result of 18 years of negotiations involving technical, legal, economic and diplomatic aspects between the two countries.”

Zambry also confirmed that a police report was lodged last week on the circulation of a fake memorandum note on the issue of the Malaysia-Indonesia border.

He said the five-page document was not prepared by the ministry nor by the negotiating team.

“We view this seriously because some of the content is untrue and had used maps that are supposed to be classified,” he said.