Rafizi backs plans to develop Ambalat with Indonesia
PETALING JAYA : Former economy minister Rafizi Ramli says he supports Malaysia's plans to work with Indonesia to develop the disputed Ambalat area off the east coast of Borneo, amid claims by Perikatan Nasional that such joint ventures could jeopardise the nation's sovereignty.
In a statement on X, Rafizi highlighted the importance of such joint development plans to the country's coffers.
He said the Ambalat block contains significant oil and gas reserves, which is especially crucial considering Petronas's declining output.
The Pandan MP said similar exploration efforts between Malaysia and Thailand in areas over which they had overlapping maritime claims had paid off handsomely as these projects now produce nearly one-third of Peninsular Malaysia's gas supply.
'Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto have, in principle, agreed to explore joint development between Malaysia and Indonesia to unlock the oil potential in Ambalat.
'I agree and support this. In fact, this was one of the matters I brought up when I was in the Cabinet.
'The federal government must engage in simultaneous discussions with both the Indonesian government and the Sabah government to ensure the state's interests are protected and that a fair share of the profits goes to the people there.
'But if this becomes a political football and the joint development plan stalls, the country and the people, from Sabah to Perlis, will continue to lose billions of ringgit in revenue every year at a time when our oil revenues are already in decline.'
Malaysia and Indonesia have had overlapping claims over the waters of the Sulawesi Sea known as the Ambalat block – located between East Kalimantan, Indonesia, and southeast Sabah – since Malaysia published a map in 1979 showing the maritime border area within Malaysian waters.
Anwar and Prabowo announced plans last week to jointly develop the Ambalat block in the Sulawesi Sea while continuing legal and diplomatic discussions on maritime sovereignty over the 15,000 sq km area.
Yesterday, opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin, who served as home minister under former prime ministers Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri Yaakob, claimed that a joint development agreement with a foreign country claiming maritime sovereignty over the area to be developed could jeopardise Malaysia's national interests.
Muhyiddin, meanwhile, said developing the Ambalat block without a clear ruling on maritime borders by the International Court of Justice or other recognised legal bodies could set a dangerous precedent and this might be used in future to undermine Malaysia's claims over this and other disputed areas.
In his post on X, Rafizi said that while PN had the right to oppose such plans, such objections should only be raised after examining the full merits of the case.
'Don't just oppose (such plans) blindly,' he said.
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