Federal govt not delaying REE SOP, says Nik Nazmi
PUTRAJAYA: Claims that the federal government is delaying the release of the standard operating procedure (SOP) for rare earth elements (REE) mining are unfounded, said Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.
In a statement today, he said the SOP had been completed and distributed to all state governments via a letter dated Dec 20, 2023.
The document outlines detailed guidelines on technical processes, environmental compliance, mine rehabilitation, and export controls.
"It serves as a comprehensive reference based on existing legislation, designed to help state governments adapt implementation in accordance with their own legal frameworks.
"As such, any delays or obstacles at the state level should not be attributed solely to the federal government," he said.
The statement was issued in response to Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor's allegation that the federal government was intentionally withholding the SOP to hinder the progress of Perikatan Nasional-led states under the SG4 alliance.
Nik Nazmi reiterated that REE mining is strictly prohibited in permanent forest reserves, environmentally sensitive areas, and designated protection zones.
"However, mining outside these areas may proceed, subject to compliance with applicable policies, laws, and guidelines," he said.
Addressing claims that an exploration SOP has yet to be released, he clarified that exploration activities fall under state jurisdiction.
"For instance, in Kedah, these provisions are already set out under the Kedah Mineral Enactment 2004 through the issuance of prospecting and exploration licences," he said.
Nik Nazmi also dismissed allegations that the federal government is deliberately obstructing state-level development.
He affirmed the government's commitment to fostering a mineral sector that is both economically beneficial and environmentally sustainable, for the long-term benefit of all states and future generations.
"It is crucial for all parties, especially state leaders, to base their arguments on facts and avoid politicising natural resource policies.
"What the people truly need is stronger collaboration between the federal and state governments to drive meaningful development," he added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
3 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
PAS eyes support of ‘critical' non-Malays disgruntled with govt
PAS vice-president Amar Abdullah said that although some PH supporters may have become disappointed with the party, they still disliked PAS over its perceived hardline Malay-Muslim stance. (Facebook pic) PETALING JAYA : Non-Malay voters disgruntled with the Pakatan Harapan-led government are the target of PAS, the largest opposition party in the Dewan Rakyat, as it prepares for the next general election. PAS vice-president Amar Abdullah acknowledged that Malay-Muslim parties have struggled to gain the support of non-Malays. However, it was apparent that voters who make up PH's core support have become increasingly critical of the government led by PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim, Amar said in an interview with Malaysiakini. 'The question now is how PAS can attract them to our side,' Amar was quoted as saying. The challenge was to find more convincing ways to win over the non-Malays ahead of the general election, which is due by February 2028. While some PH supporters may have become disappointed with the coalition's inability to execute various reforms it had promised, he admitted that they still disliked PAS due to its perceived hardline Malay-Muslim stance. 'This is what we're currently thinking about: how to win their support,' he said, adding that the Islamic party must preserve its clean image to retain young voters. Amar also took a swipe at its Perikatan Nasional partner Gerakan for making statements that have 'harmed and undermined' PAS. He urged Gerakan, the only multiracial party in the opposition coalition, to exercise control in making public statements, adding that PAS keeps an eye on such matters. 'I have to be honest here, because occasionally their remarks have backfired. They need to be careful and exercise control, because we're part of the same coalition. There must be give and take,' he said. Gerakan has 'much to improve' in attracting Chinese voters, who have been largely supporting DAP, and Gerakan's machinery and groundwork needed improvement, while the party's image itself needed to be rebuilt, he said. In November last year, Gerakan president Dominic Lau urged PAS to declare that it will not interfere with the rights of other communities, in order to ease the concerns of non-Malays and boost their support for PN. However, PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man shot down the proposal, saying Gerakan should not blame the Islamic party for its failure to muster support from the Chinese community.
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Still starving in Gaza
FOR Abdelhalim Awad, who runs a bakery in the central Gaza Strip, the hope of food arriving for hungry Palestinians was like the endless reports of an approaching ceasefire: constantly rumoured to be just around the corner yet always out of reach. Weeks after Israel announced that it would ease its blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza, little of the desperately needed food, fuel, and medicine has reached hungry Palestinians. Dozens of trucks ferrying supplies have crossed into Gaza at the Israeli-controlled border crossing of Kerem Shalom, according to Israel. But they were only be a dent in the daily hunger that has become widespread in Gaza under the Israeli blockade. 'Even if we get some flour today, it seems we won't have anything close to what's needed to feed people,' Awad said. In the meantime, Palestinians reeling from Israel's almost three-month ban on food, fuel, and other supplies have been left waiting. 'Today we will mostly eat lentils or pasta,' Riyadh al-Housari, a 25-year-old in Gaza City, said in a phone interview. 'We eat one meal in the late afternoon. It is one meal, and there is no other.' Israel's blockade has rendered the situation so dire that Palestinians in Gaza are at 'critical risk of famine', a panel of United Nations-backed experts said in May. They projected that tens of thousands of children could suffer from acute malnutrition if the restrictions continue. Israel argued the report was based on faulty data and assumptions. The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza has ignited growing international opprobrium against the Israeli campaign against Hamas. Even Israel's allies – which offered vigorous support after the Hamas-led Oct 7, 2023, attacks started the war – have voiced frustration and even anger over the conflict and its cost to ordinary Palestinians. Last month, Britain, France, and Canada denounced the Israeli blockade and planned ground offensive in unusually stark and harsh terms, labelling them 'disproportionate' and 'egregious'. The British government said it was suspending negotiations on expanding the countries' free-trade agreement in protest. The newly anointed pope, Leo XIV, has also joined the chorus calling for aid to be allowed into the Gaza Strip. He described the situation as 'increasingly worrying and painful' and urged 'the entry of dignified humanitarian aid and to put an end to the hostilities'. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the international criticism and reiterated his threat of a huge escalation of the war in Gaza. He described the coming ground offensive as the final and decisive blow against Hamas, adding that by the end of it, 'all of Gaza's territory will be under Israeli security control'. The Israeli ban on humanitarian aid began in early March, as the initial phase of a two-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas ended. Both sides were supposed to be negotiating the next steps in the truce. Israeli officials argued the restrictions aimed to pressure Hamas to compromise. The impact on ordinary people in Gaza is immense: Aid organisations suspended their operations as food stockpiles dwindled, and the price of food skyrocketed. In late March, Israel ended the truce with a massive bombardment and resumed its offensive against Hamas in Gaza. By May, relief officials were warning that widespread hunger had become a daily reality. But for weeks, Israel refused to allow aid agencies to resume operations unless they agreed to new Israeli conditions, purportedly to prevent supplies from falling into Hamas' hands. Israeli leaders publicly insisted that Gaza still had plentiful stockpiles of food. But behind closed doors, some military officials privately concluded that Palesti-nians there could face starvation within weeks. Even the United States – one of Israel's most stalwart supporters throughout the conflict – began suggesting that the humanitarian crisis was spiralling out of control. Even US President Donald Trump said that 'a lot of people are starving' in the Gaza Strip and that the United States was working to alleviate the situation. After those comments by Trump, Israeli authorities relented, announcing that they would begin allowing in small amounts of food. On June 4, however, US vetoed a United Nations security council resolution calling for an 'immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire' in Gaza while the 14 remaining countries on the council voted in favour. Meanwhile, the US backed Israeli Gaza Humanitarian Foundation has paused food distribution after soldiers opened fire on Palestinians trying to get some of the aid. With new aid slow to arrive, many in Gaza are trying to make whatever provisions they have last as long as possible. 'We don't plan meals anymore,' said Sabah Abu al-Roos, 63, in the central city of Deir al-Balah. 'We just work with whatever we can find.' Produce like eggplants and tomatoes is often hawked at eye-watering prices, according to several Palestinians. Iman Jundiyeh, a mother of four in Gaza City, said she could only dream of the regular meals she used to enjoy before the war: fragrant sliced lamb; chicken, potatoes and rice; and maftoul, a kind of Palestinian couscous. She now relies almost exclusively on soup kitchens run by charities that still manage to stew pots of lentils and other staples for crowds of displaced Palestinians. Everything else is either unavailable or too expensive, she said. 'Just yesterday, my son begged me for watermelon,' Jundiyeh said. 'I started to cry with him.' – 2025 The New York Times Company This article was first published on The New York Times.
The Sun
a day ago
- The Sun
China eyes Pacific patrols, risks tension with U.S., Taiwan
SYDNEY: China is taking further steps towards high seas boarding of fishing boats in the Pacific for the first time, risking tensions with Taiwanese fleets and U.S. Coast Guard vessels that ply the region, Pacific Islands officials told Reuters. The Chinese Coast Guard demonstrated the capabilities of one of its largest ships, used to enforce maritime law in the Taiwan Strait, to Pacific Island ministers last week. It is also actively involved in debates on the rules of high seas boarding, according to documents and interviews with Pacific fisheries officials. The fisheries officials said it was anticipated China will soon begin patrols in a 'crowded' fisheries surveillance space. 'Hosting the leaders, demonstrating their capabilities in terms of maritime operations, those kind of things are indications they want to step into that space,' said Allan Rahari, director of fisheries operations for the Forum Fisheries Agency, in an interview with Reuters. The agency runs enforcement against illegal fishing for a group of 18 Pacific Island countries, with assistance from navy and air force patrols by Australia, the United States, France and New Zealand. The biggest fishing fleets in the Pacific, attracting the most infringement notices by inspectors, are Chinese and Taiwanese. But China is also the largest fisheries partner to some Pacific Island countries, and Rahari said agreements for Chinese coast guard patrols in coastal waters could be struck under security deals with these countries. China registered 26 coast guard vessels with the Western & Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) in 2024 for high seas boarding and inspections in a vast region where the U.S. and Australia have the biggest inspection fleets. The commission has not received a notification from China that it has conducted any inspection, but Chinese officials have become active in debate over the rules on boardings, WCPFC executive director Rhea Moss-Christian told Reuters. China last year called for a review of the guidelines, and in March, Chinese officials attended a video meeting about an Australian-led effort to strengthen voluntary rules, she said. WCPFC inspectors in international waters need to gain permission for each inspection from the suspected vessel's flag state before boarding. Rahari said it could be 'very complicated' diplomatically if a Chinese coast guard vessel sought to board a Taiwanese fishing boat. Beijing does not recognise Taiwan as a separate country. Chinese officials and the Chinese Coast Guard did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. Australia declined to comment, while Taiwan and the U.S. Coast Guard did not respond to requests for comment. SHIP TOUR Foreign ministers from 10 Pacific Island nations visited the coastal Chinese city of Xiamen and toured Haixun 06, which can travel 18,500 km (11,470 miles or 10,000 nautical miles) or 60 days without resupply. Papua New Guinea (PNG) foreign minister Justin Tkatchenko said 10 Pacific Island ministers saw the Chinese coast guard demonstrate a maritime emergency drill, but told Reuters they did not discuss Pacific patrols. PNG is negotiating a new defence treaty with Australia, and struck a 2023 security deal with the United States allowing the U.S. Coast Guard to patrol PNG's 2.7 million square kilometre exclusive economic zone. Fiji said it had approved a new maritime security agreement with Australia this week. Nauru's government broadcaster posted photographs on social media of the Haixun 06 drill, which it said 'reaffirmed the importance of maritime cooperation between China and Pacific Island nations'. Under a security treaty struck in December, Nauru must notify Australia before the Chinese navy comes to port. The U.S. Coast Guard has maritime law enforcement agreements with a dozen Pacific Island nations allowing it to enter nations' exclusive economic zones, and increased its patrols last year. 'The key considerations for China is stepping into that space without stepping on other partners toes, because that will then create conflicts within the region and that is something we don't want,' Rahari said. Reuters previously reported the first U.S. Coast Guard patrol in Vanuatu's waters saw local officials board several Chinese fishing boats in 2024, finding infringements, which Beijing criticised. Since 2008, Chinese fishing vessels were issued with 158 infringements, or 46% of Chinese boardings by WCPFC inspectors including the U.S., France and Australia, WCPFC data shows. Taiwanese fishing boats were issued 233 infringements.
