On the ground: Mohamed Khaled (left) handing out zakat from Boustead Petroleum Marketing Sdn Bhd to about 200 recipients at the Muhajirin Mosque in Masai, Johor Baru.
JOHOR BARU: Malaysia is not planning to issue a new map as there are no changes to its maritime borders, says Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
The Defence Minister said when other countries like the Philippines produce new maps, it means that there were changes to its maritime boundaries.
“Malaysia’s maritime map remains the same. What has changed was their (Philippines) map as they infringed into our territory.
“We will continue defending our territory and sovereignty through diplomacy and international laws.
“Malaysia will also conduct integrated patrols through the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, navy and army to have a show of presence and maritime domain awareness to show that those are our territories,” he told reporters after handing out zakat from Boustead Petroleum Marketing Sdn Bhd to about 200 recipients at the Muhajirin Mosque in Masai here yesterday.
Mohamed Khaled was asked to comment on the Filipino map change and the country’s two new maritime laws, which were seen as an effort to strengthen its claims over portions of the South China Sea.
However, he noted that the Philippines’ actions was not an “attack” on Malaysia.
“The public must understand that it is not an attack, so we have to address this through diplomacy,” he added.
On Nov 14, Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Mohamad Alamin told Dewan Rakyat that Malaysia is sending a protest note to the Philippines regarding its two new maritime laws that infringe on Sabah’s maritime boundaries.
He reportedly said the Philippine Maritime Zones Act and the Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, signed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Nov 8, overstepped Malaysia’s 1979 New Map, which is based on international law.
Mohamad added that reference documents related to these laws also touched upon the Filipino claim over Sabah.
On a separate matter, Mohamed Khaled said his ministry is studying the need to purchase helicopters for the army rather than leasing the assets.
He said the study was another option that the ministry was taking, considering the unavailability of helicopters that fit the desired specifications.
“The initial plan was to lease the helicopters for a five-year period, but if that plan cannot be carried out, we should consider purchasing the assets.
“This option will take a longer period. I believe (the study) is being done and we must understand that asset acquisition is time consuming,” he added.
On Nov 6, Mohamed Khaled said the ministry has issued a contract cancellation notice for the lease of four Black Hawk helicopters to a company after it missed several delivery deadlines, with the last one on Oct 30.
