KENINGAU – Sabah Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Jeffrey Kitingan has urged the federal government to take serious action in defending the region’s maritime sovereignty in view of the overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea.
He said there had been encroachments by China’s military assets in the South China Sea with 23 instances reported by the Royal Malaysian Navy between 2013 and 2021 in Malaysia’s Exclusive Economic Zones.
“The federal government must take stronger steps in respect to Sabah as a partner in the federation of Malaysia.
“This is in line with the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
“The federal government has to take a sterner action against any external threat to ensure that the maritime sovereignty of the nation, particularly Sabah’s, is defended,” he said in a statement here.
The Sabah Star president said he has been following closely the conflicting claims in the South China Sea and urged Putrajaya, including the Defence Ministry and other related agencies, for much more serious intervention over the issue.
He said these encroachments are not new and are affecting the economy.
Since last year, China’s Maritime Enforcement Agency has been reported to have encroached on Kawasari, a gas field off the coast of Sarawak, and affected works involving the development of the country’s new oil and gas operations by Petronas.
The continuous intimidation by 300 of China’s maritime vessels patrolling in the South China Sea has also affected the work of small fishermen in Sabah. – The Vibes, May 4, 2022
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