Malaysian speaker: Philippines 'doing the right thing' with China talks
MANILA, Philippines — Malaysian House Speaker Johari Abdul said the Philippines is "doing the right thing" by engaging with China diplomatically amid its territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
"Whatever the Filipinos are doing is the right thing. It means it's engaged. You know, anything on earth, the best thing to do is engage," Johari told reporters in Manila on Tuesday, January 28.
Malaysia opposes external interference in the South China Sea dispute, where it, along with the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations, has overlapping claims.
As ASEAN chair this year, Malaysia faces the daunting task of navigating the South China Sea dispute amid China's years-long reluctance to accelerate talks on a Code of Conduct. The situation is further complicated by rising regional tensions due to Beijing's increasing aggressive maritime behavior.
"That's what I think, that's what the Philippine government is doing with China. You engage, talk, engage and talk," said the Malaysian leader, who undertook a three-day official visit to the Philippines from January 27 to 29.
When asked if Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim would be open to maritime delimitation talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Johari said both leaders are always engaged in dialogue.
"It has always been talking. We never stop. Day talk, night talk, morning talk, every time," the Malaysian House speaker said.
Family friends?
Johari said Marcos and Anwar are "very close."
"Anwar and President Marcos Jr. is very close like a family friend. In fact, the Madam [Imee] Marcos is a very close friend to Prime Minister Anwar. They talk in the morning, during lunch, breakfast, dinner, supper," Johari said.
When asked about Malaysia's position on the Philippines' recently passed Maritime Zones Act, Johari deferred to executive officials. "That is the work of [the] executive to look into it. So probably the executive who is in charge of that will certainly issue a statement after they have looked at the whole thing and again after the talk," Johari said.
Johari did not comment on whether Malaysia will shepherd a stronger ASEAN stance on territorial disputes with China as it chairs the body this year. He said, however, that successful diplomacy requires patience. "You can't put a timeline. I want the answer by tomorrow, you can't do that. This is what diplomacy is all about," he said.
The Malaysian leader also drew parallels between the South China Sea situation and ASEAN's approach to Myanmar when discussing regional engagement strategies.
"Some even ask me this tough question, why don't ASEAN take more tough action against Myanmar? I say, why should we?" Johari said. He said this approach could be counterproductive: "If you push a person too hard to a corner until he doesn't have that breathing space, it might not help at all."
The law, which was signed in November 2024, declares the Philippines' maritime zones in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
In November, Malaysia said it would protest the law, with Malaysian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohamad Alamin telling parliament that it encroaches on Malaysia's oil-rich state of Sabah.
Sabah, a Malaysian state in Borneo, has been the subject of a long-standing territorial dispute between Malaysia and the Philippines, with Manila maintaining a historic claim to the territory based on the ancestral rights of the Sultanate of Sulu.
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