South China Sea: Malaysia summons Chinese envoy after Beijing’s vessels enter EEZ

After Chinese vessels ventured into Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea off the island of Borneo, Kuala Lumpur has summoned Beijing’s ambassador to protest against the “presence and activities” of the vessels.

The vessels, which include a survey boat, were present off the coasts of the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.

In a statement on Monday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, the action is in contravention of 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The statement has not elaborated on the number of ships involved or when the incident took place.

“Malaysia’s consistent position and actions are based on international law, in defence of our sovereignty and sovereign rights in our waters. It had also protested against the previous encroachments by other foreign vessels in our waters,” it said.

The China has been militarising the region by allegedly deploying anti-ship cruise missiles, anti-aircraft guns, surface-to-air missiles and electronic jamming equipment on the disputed artificial islands in the South China Sea.

The Chinese have also been carrying out military drills in the region. They have been making all attempts to protect its occupation of these islands. For this, it has been sending its vessels to the area in large number to either terrorise other navies or sink the fishing vessels to discourage people from venturing into the area.

(With inputs from agencies)