REMBAU: Malaysia will send a diplomatic note to the Philippines Govt to reject any claims on Sabah, says Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.
The Foreign Minister said Sabah was already a part of the federation decades ago and no one could lay a claim on the state.
"This is nothing new as we have done so tens of times previously. To me, this is yet another attempt to divert attention from their internal problems," he said when met at his Hari Raya open house in Rantau near here.
Mohamad said some politicians would resort to making such claims to get support from their people.
He said there was no basis for this as Sabahans had themselves chosen to be part of the federation through the Cobbold Commission, followed by the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
"Even the United Nations had recognised and endorsed this. So like I said, some politicians merely want to be seen to be championing certain issues for mileage or to cover up their own weaknesses," he said.
Mohamad was asked to respond to a statement by Philippines Senator Robin Padilla who urged President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr to revive the Philippines' claim over Sabah amidst the petroleum crisis and price hike due to the Middle East crisis.
Padilla had said in a Facebook post that the Philippine Govt should send emissaries to Malaysia to negotiate territorial claims over Sabah, a Malaysian state known to be rich in oil and gas.
Mohamad said the issue would not cause any problems to diplomatic ties with the Philippines as the call came from a senator.
"We also know the Philippines Govt already has a clear stand on this," he said.
On a separate matter, Mohamad expressed confidence that the seven Malaysia ships currently stranded in the Strait of Hormuz would be able to sail back soon.
"I have spoken to my Iranian counterpart and this was followed by a call by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian," he said.
He said the Iranian Govt has agreed to allow the ships through the strait.
"There will be a window period when these tankers will be allowed to leave the strait and this can be anytime and even as we speak now," he said.
Mohamad added that a Malaysian cargo ship carrying fertiliser had earlier been given the greenlight to sail through.
He said the seven tankers were amongst others owned by PETRONAS, MISC Bhd and Sapura Energy.
Mohamad said the delays were also probably caused by communication problems and the fact that many vessels were already stranded in the vicinity.
According to reports, about 2,000 commercial vessels are currently stranded in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz.
