Malaysia, China agree to maintain peace, stability in the South China Sea

ZHEJIANG (China), Dec 5 — Malaysia and China have emphasized the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea, said Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.

Speaking to the media in a joint press conference with China’s State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, here, on Saturday, Saifuddin said both sides agreed that the South China Sea is a small compartment of both countries’ deep-rooted bilateral relations.

“We have been agreeable on the ways (on) how we solved issues; and as a member of ASEAN, we appreciate the fact that China is also working with us on the conclusion of the Code of Conduct (CoC),” he said.

Earlier, Saifuddin and Wang Yi co-chaired the inaugural meeting of the Malaysia-China High-Level Committee (HLC) on Cooperation in the post-COVID-19 era, which was conducted in a hybrid setting, with the participation of representatives of relevant agencies from both sides from Putrajaya and Beijing via video link.

Saifuddin, who was on a two-day official visit here since Friday, said Malaysia also noted and is following closely the latest developments relating to United States-China relations.

He said Malaysia believes in peaceful coexistence among countries in the world and it is the only way to uphold and foster greater peace and harmony that is sustainable.

NMT as reported by Bernama