What’s Malaysia’s stance on the South China Sea? Latest remarks raise potential shift

“It is better for issues within Asean and the Southeast Asian region to be resolved through negotiations and dialogue among the countries themselves,” the minister said, adding that external influence would lead to “uncertainty” in the region.

Tensions between China and the Philippines have escalated in recent months, leading to clashes in the disputed area, including an “intentional-high speed ramming” by a Chinese Coast Guard ship on June 17, in which a Filipino sailor suffered serious injury.

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Sharon Seah, coordinator of the Asean Studies Centre at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said there was great “frustration” from the Philippines at the drafting of last week’s ministerial meeting joint communique as Manila’s attempts to reflect the ramming incident were rejected by Asean, particularly Cambodia and the Asean chair Laos.

“[Manila] would certainly appreciate more support from its fellow claimant states, if not from Asean in general, in calling out behaviours that put persons’ safety at risk,” Seah said.

There are concerns that Malaysia’s soft stance on the South China Sea, which contradicts the Philippines’ position, may become more pronounced during its chairmanship of Asean in 2025, Seah said.

“This has brought into question whether Malaysia’s neutral foreign policy stance is changing under the Anwar government,” she said.

China has been Malaysia’s largest and most important trading partner since 2009 with total trade valued at US$98.9 billion in 2023. During Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s visit to Malaysia in June, several bilateral agreements were signed, including a new five-year deal on economic and trade