KUALA LUMPUR – The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) chased out nine Indonesian fishing boats that encroached Malaysian waters about 44 nautical miles southeast of Pulau Perak, Kedah this evening.
The Western Fleet Command Headquarters’ Strategic Communication Division, in a statement today, said the fishing boats were chased out by KD Mahawangsa while carrying out patrolling duties under Op Benteng in the North Melaka Straits at about 1 pm.
“KD Mahawangsa, which was on patrol, detected the nine Indonesian fishing boats in Malaysian waters.
“Upon realising the presence of the ship, all the fishing boats quickly headed out of Malaysian waters,” said the statement.
It added that a CL-415MP aircraft belonging to the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), which was performing an air reconnaissance in the North Melaka Straits, was also used to help chase out the Indonesian fishing boats at 3.20 pm.
KD Mahawangsa then continued to patrol the North Melaka Straits to prevent foreign fishing boats from encroaching Malaysian waters.
Seize their illegal fish catches first before chasing intruders’ fishing bots away. Otherwise, they’ll do it again with impunity.