Malaysia refers to the maritime area encompassing Blocks ND6 and ND7, which lie within Peta Baru Malaysia 1979, as the Sulawesi Sea, not “Ambalat”, the term used by Indonesia, Wisma Putra said.
In a statement today, the foreign ministry said the International Court of Justice’s judgment in 2002 on the sovereignty of Sipadan and Ligitan islands further strengthened Malaysia’s maritime position in the Sulawesi Sea.
“The foreign minister underscores that any terminology must be correctly used and reflect Malaysia’s sovereign position and legal rights over the area concerned.”
It said foreign minister Mohamad Hasan had also clarified the matter in Parliament today.
The ministry also said possible joint development between Malaysia and Indonesia in the Sulawesi Sea was still at the exploratory stage and “nothing has been agreed by both sides”.
It said Malaysia remained committed to protecting its sovereignty, sovereign rights and interests in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982.
“All discussions on this matter shall be conducted by way of diplomatic, legal and technical mechanisms within the established bilateral frameworks,” said the ministry.
On June 27, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Malaysia and Indonesia should go ahead to jointly develop the disputed oil-rich area off the east coast of Borneo without waiting to solve legal and regulatory obstacles.
Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto had also called for accelerated efforts to resolve technical border issues and to begin joint economic projects in such areas through a joint development authority.
Anwar said he and Prabowo had expressed the strong commitment of both countries to accelerate strategic cooperation in various fields, including joint development in the Sulawesi Sea, in a peaceful and mutually beneficial manner.
