Malaysia: Malaysia has gained an additional 780 hectares following the re-measurement and re-demarcation of the Outstanding Boundary Problem (OBP) areas at Sungai Sinapad and Sungai Sesai along the Malaysia-Indonesia border, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. He said the newly confirmed area places Kampung Kabulangalor, Kampung Lepaga, and Kampung Tetagas within Malaysian territory.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Anwar emphasized that claims suggesting Malaysia ceded 5,207 hectares to Indonesia as compensation for three villages in Nunukan are unfounded. He made this clarification during a special briefing on the Malaysia-Indonesia border issue in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Anwar detailed that joint investigations, marking, and re-measurements by Indonesian and Malaysian mapping officers were conducted for the Sungai Sinapad and Sungai Sesai OBP up to August 2022 and October 2023. This process resulted in an agreed final distance of 11.545 kilometers. For the Pulau Sebatik OBP, re-measurements were carried out from February to November 2019, establishing a final distance of 23.842 kilometers from the East Pillar to the New West Pillar.
The Prime Minister explained that every inch of land was negotiated and agreed upon by the Sabah Government before finalizing with the Malaysian and Indonesian governments. Following this, the agreement was referred to the 45th Indonesia-Malaysia Joint Border Committee Meeting (JIM-45) on February 18, 2025. Through a memorandum of understanding inked at the meeting, Malaysia gained an additional 0.05 square kilometers, or five hectares, in the Sebatik OBP, and 7.8 square kilometers, or 780 hectares, in the Sungai Sinapad-Sungai Sesai OBP.
Anwar further clarified that the total disputed area in the Sungai Sinapad-Sungai Sesai OBP within sectors B2700-B3100 amounted to 5,987 hectares and had historically been under Indonesian administrative control. He noted that although the area was originally part of Indonesia, the map was never finalized, and Malaysia did not agree. This situation persisted since 1915, with no disputes raised by the British government or successive Malaysian governments.