PETALING JAYA: Malaysia would have had an "arguable" case if it continued its application for review and interpretation of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision over the sovereignty of Batu Puteh, Middle Rock and South Ledge, according to the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on the matter.
The commission found the country did not have a "weak case" as stated by then-prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
"The decision to stop pursuing the application at the final stages is very regrettable.
"Based on statements given by Malaysia's legal team, they were ready to argue on this at the ICJ," according to the report tabled in Parliament on Thursday (Dec 5).
The report also said that the two local consultants for the case said Malaysia filed the application to review the ICJ ruling based on three new documents.
Singapore then filed an appeal to strike out Malaysia's application.
"According to the consultants, Singapore's appeal was rejected by the ICJ. This shows Malaysia's application to review the decision is not exactly weak as defined by Dr Mahathir," said the report.
The commission also said that the Cabinet had agreed with the decision not to pursue both applications solely based on Dr Mahathir's explanation.
"The decision was not made through a thorough discussion," it added.
The RCI, chaired by Tun Md Raus Sharif, was tasked with reviewing the handling of matters related to the sovereignty of Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge.
In February, the government announced that His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, had consented to the establishment of the RCI.
The issue stems from a decision made by the government in 2018 to withdraw Malaysia's application to review the ICJ's decision on the sovereignty of Batu Puteh.
At the time, the government was led by Dr Mahathir.
In 2008, the ICJ ruled that Batu Puteh belonged to Singapore while Middle Rocks was awarded to Malaysia.
It also ruled that the ownership of South Ledge would be determined based on the delimitation of territorial waters.
Malaysia applied to review ICJ's ruling in 2017 but it was then withdrawn in May 2018.
The RCI report noted that Malaysia could refile the application for a new interpretation at any appropriate time.
