Malaysian premier calls for dialogue to end disputes over South China Sea

ANKARA (AA) – Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has called for a dialogue to resolve the longstanding dispute over the South China Sea, saying that the problem is not “insurmountable.”

There is no easy solution to the overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea, nor is the problem insurmountable as long as there is dialogue, Ibrahim, who visited Beijing last week, said in an interview published Tuesday by the Chinese English daily China Daily.

Stressing that the South China Sea issues should not be “that contentious,” Ibrahim called for dialogue with other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states that also claim a stake in the rich resources of the sea to resolve the differences.

“I believe that there is no easy solution to that problem. As we think of each other as friends, we continue to have dialogue, this problem is not insurmountable,” he added.

He expressed satisfaction that the Chinese leadership had agreed to take the position of engaging in dialogues and promoting proper understanding of the issue.

“I would say the things that we agreed upon is 95 per cent, and the five (per cent) we disagree, it should not cause problem,” he added.

He also highlighted that the Southeast Asian region should continue to be led by the 10-member ASEAN with its policy of neutrality and as a zone of peace while having good relations with all countries.

The mineral-rich warm waters of the South China Sea have long been the subject of contention between China and some regional countries, with the US siding with countries opposing China’s claims.

Washington has frequently sailed its warships and flown its fighter jets over the warm waters of the South China Sea under the so-called “freedom of navigation,” which Beijing has repeatedly denounced as a violation of its territorial integrity.

ASEAN members Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam all have coastlines on the South China Sea. Taiwan, which Beijing claims is part of China, is also a claimant.

China and ASEAN signed the “Declaration on the Conduct” – an agreement on the South China Sea – in November 2002, marking Beijing’s first acceptance of a multilateral agreement on the issue.

China’s claims are based on its so-called “nine-dash line,” which are purple dashes on official Chinese maps that represent Beijing’s historical claims to the sea.

However, in 2016, the Philippines won a case at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague that invalidated China’s South China Sea expansion claims.