KUALA LUMPUR: The recent visit of two Chinese navy ships to Penang was conducted following proper diplomatic channels, stated Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
"There was nothing extraordinary about the visit. It was a cheerful occasion aligned with celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China," he explained.
The Defence Ministry approved the ships' port call at Penang, while Wisma Putra managed the diplomatic approvals for their entry into Malaysian waters.
"The Penang state government handled the visit's details, including the itinerary, after conducting security checks. There have been no regulatory violations so far," Mohamad added.
On the past Saturday (Oct 12), the Penang government announced the arrival of 1,000 Chinese naval trainees aboard two ships, the Qi Jiguang Training Ship and the JinggangShan Ship, from Zhanjiang for a friendly visit.
The 83rd task force of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) and their trainees visited various attractions in Penang and interacted with local residents.
Critics raised concerns on social media about their visit to a ceremony at Chung Ling (Private) Middle School, which went viral on platforms like TikTok.
Separately, Mohamad addressed ongoing investigations into a report containing classified diplomatic notes between Malaysia and China.
The Foreign Minister stated that Wisma Putra is probing the origin of the alleged document, which lacked a watermark typical of official documents.
"The investigation will determine if the document originated from Wisma Putra or another government agency," he said.
Mohamad referred to the breach of classified information following an article by a Filipino news portal on Aug 29, detailing diplomatic notes addressed to the Malaysian Embassy in Beijing on Feb 18.
A police report was filed concerning the article, as it contained classified information.
The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported that Beijing demanded Malaysia stop oil and gas exploration activities within its exclusive economic zone, claiming these actions infringe on China's sovereignty under its disputed nine, now 10-dash line.
Mohamad asserted that Malaysia will continue using diplomatic channels, including Asean, to discuss South China Sea matters.
He emphasized, "The South China Sea issue should be managed by Asean collectively, not by a single country."
As of August this year, Malaysia and China co-chair a three-year period of Asean-China meetings regarding the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and negotiations to finalise the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea.
