Malaysia Keeps Eye on ‘Status Quo’, Beijing Trade Ties with Quiet Approach in South China Sea

Picture: AMTI/CSIS

In an article by South China Morning Post, Maria Siow updates Malaysia’s restrained approach in addressing China’s intrusive behavior vis-a-vis the disputed territorial claims in the South China Sea.

On February 17, the China Coast Guard 5403 vessel sailed off the coast of Malaysia to begin a period of intrusive patrolling into the country’s oil and gas fields, according to SeaLight, a Stanford University project focused on grey zone activities in the South China Sea. The patrol is still ongoing.

Ngeow Chow-Bing, director of the Institute of China Studies at the University of Malaya, said Malaysia had maintained a low profile approach to China’s maritime intrusions for more than a decade, preferring to register its protests through diplomatic channels while sending out navy and coastguard vessels to keep an eye on the Chinese boats.

“We all know that China relentlessly hacks its Southeast Asian neighbours,” Friis said, pointing to recent evidence suggesting some of these cyber operations were aimed at gathering information that China’s coastguard used in its operations to harass offshore energy companies in Kasawari.