Malaysia-Thailand border

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The Malaysia-Thailand border consist of both a land boundary across the Malay Peninsula and maritime boundaries in the Straits of Malacca and the Gulf of Thailand/South China Sea. Malaysia lies to the south of the border while Thailand lies to the north. The Golok River forms the easternmost 95km stretch of the land border.

The land border is based on the one agreed to in the 1909 treaty between Thailand, then known as Siam, and the British which started to exert its influence over the northern Malay states of Kedah, Kelantan, Perlis and Terengganu. The four states had earlier been under Siamese control. Four Malaysian states abutt the border. They are (from west to east) Perlis, Kedah, Perak and Kelantan. The four Thai provinces which abutt the border are (again from west to east) are Satun, Songkhla, Yala and Narathiwat.

Malaysia and Thailand have a continental shelf boundary agreement for the Straits of Malacca which was signed in 1971. The agreement also included Indonesia as a signatory as it also determined the common maritime tripoint among all three countries. The agreement however did not cover the boundary in the Gulf of Thailand, where there were overlapping claims. The claims led to the establishment of a joint development area in 1990 where both countries agreed to share mineral resources in a 7,250 square km wedge-shaped area.

A territorial sea boundary agreement for the Straits of Malacca was signed by the two countries in 1979.

Contents 1 The border 1.1 Land border 1.2 Maritime border 1.2.1 Straits of Malacca 1.2.2 Gulf of Thailand/South China Sea 2 History 3 Disputes 3.1 Bukit Jeli 3.2 Gulf of Thailand 4 Joint development area 5 Barrier 6 Border crossings 6.1 Road crossings 6.2 Railway crossings 6.3 Ferry crossing 7 Gallery 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

[edit] The border

[edit] Land border

From west to east, the 646.5km Malaysia-Thailand border begins at a point which lies just north of the Perlis River estuary as defined in the schedule of the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909 where the western most land boundary terminus was to be at "the most seaward point of the northern bank of the estuary of the Perlis River".

The treaty then states that the border moves northward from this point to the Sayun Range, an extension of the Si Thammarat Mountains of Thailand, for about 15 miles (24km) before heading eastward along the watershed of Thailand's Lam Yai River and Malaysia's Perlis River towards the ridge of the Kedah-Singgora mountains where it moves soutwards along the ridgeline till it reaches the watershed for the Perak and Pattani Rivers.

The border then moves eastward across the northern part of Peninsula Malaysia's Main Range (Malay: Banjaran Titiwangsa) along the watershed of Malaysia's Perak River and Pergau River (in Kelantan) and Thailand's Pattani and Sai Buri Rivers until it reaches Bukit Jeli. An 8km stretch of the border around Bukit Jeli is being disputed by both countries (see below).

From Bukit Jeli, the boundary follows the Golok River until the river mouth at Kuala Tabar, a distance of 95km. The border follows the deepest part or thalweg of the river.^[1]

[edit] Maritime border

Malaysia and Thailand share maritime borders in two segments - in the Straits of Malacca and in the Gulf of Thailand/South China Sea.

[edit] Straits of Malacca

At the western terminus of the land boundary, the 1909 Anglo-Siamese treaty determines the start of the maritime boundary as:

With regard to the islands close to the west coast, those lying to the north of the parallel of latitude where the most seaward point of the north bank of the estuary of the Perlis River (the western terminus of the Malaysia-Thailand land boundary) touches the sea shall remain to Siam, and those lying to the south of the parallel shall become British."

The island known as Pule Langkawi, together with all the islets south of the mid-channel between Terutau and Langkawi, and all the islands south of Langkawi shall become British. Terutau and the islets to the north of mid-channel shall remain to Siam.

The territorial sea boundary agreement between the two countries signed on 24 October 1979 determined the mid-channel point between Langkawi and Tarutao to be at 6°28′30″N, 99°39′12″E which was made the eastern starting point of the territorial sea boundary. From that point, the boundary travels in a northwesterly direction to 6º 30’.2 N, 99º 33’.4 E and then in a southwesterly direction to 6º 28’.9 N, 99º 30’.7 E, then in a southwesterly direction again to 6º 18’.4 N, 99º 27’.5 E. From this coordinate, the outer limits of the territorial sea boundary runs to 6º 16’.3 N, 99º 19’.3 E and then to 6º 18’.0 N, 99º 06’.7 E.^[2]

Both countries also have a continental shelf boundary agreement for this segment. The agreement, which was signed 21 December 1978, also included Indonesia as a signatory to enable the establishment of the common tripoint at 5º 57.0' N, 98º 01.5' E. From the tripoint, the Malaysia-Thailand border the moves in straighline sectors generally easternly and northeasterly to terminate at 6º 18.4' N, 99º 27.5' E, with two turning points in between.^[3]

[edit] Gulf of Thailand/South China Sea

The 1979 territorial sea boundary agreement also covers this segment, stating that the boundary is formed by the straight line drawn from a point whose coordinates are 6º 14’.5 N, 102º 05’.6 E (which is located at the mount of the Golok River at Kuala Tabar), to 6º 27’.5 N, 102º 10’.0 E.

This boundary is based on the 1909 treaty which states:

"All islands adjacent to the eastern States of Kelantan and Tringganu, south of the parallel of latitude drawn from the point where the Sungei Golok reaches the coast at a place called Kuala Tabar, shall be transferred to Great Britain, and all islands to the north of that parallel shall remain to Siam."

The 1973 continental shelf boundary agreement between the two countries did not cover the border in the Gulf of Thailand. On 21 February 1979, both countries signed the Memorandum of Understanding for the Establishment of a Joint Authority for the Exploitation of the Resources of the Sea-Bed in a Defined Area of the Continental Shelf of the Two Countries in the Gulf of Thailand to enable joint exploitation of natural resources of an area where the sovereignty has been disputed by both countries. This was followed by an Agreement on the Constitution and Other Matters Relating to the Establishment of the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Authority which was signed on 30 May 1990 establishing the joint development area (JDA). The agreement however does not set out to settle the sovereignty issue of the disputed area and both countries continued with their overlapping continental shelf claims.

In December 1979 just after the two countries signed the MOU on the joint development area, Malaysia published a map^[4] denoting its territorial sea and continental shelf and continued to assert its sovereignty over the entire joint development area. Malaysia's continental shelf boundary on the map corresponds with the western and northern limit of the joint development area. The eastern and northern limits of the joint development area corresponds with Thailand's claim over the continental shelf.

It is noteworthy that a small triangle inside the northern side of the agreed joint development area was also subjected to an overlapping claim by Vietnam and in 1999, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam agreed to apply the joint development principles for this area. See below.

[edit] History

The border between Thailand or Siam and the sultanates of the Malay Peninsular (Peninsula Malaysia today) has varied throughout history according to the influence the kingdom over the sultanates. The southern part of Siam has always been populated by Malays and traditional Malay sultanates of Kedah (of which Perlis was part), Kelantan, Pattani (which consist of the areas of Singgora, Yala, Ligor and Setul) and Terengganu came under Siamese suzerainty in the 19th century. The Malay states to immediately to the south, namely Perak and Pahang were independent sultanates until the British started asserting influence over them in the late 1800s. The frontier between the states were largely vague and not well defined.

In 1785, the British ontained the island of Penang from the Sultan of Kedah. The channel between the island and the mainland of Peninsula Malaysia became the border between British territory and Kedah, and therefore Siamese, territory.

On 6 May 1869, Great Britain and Siam signed an agreement known as the Bangkok Treaty of 1869 where Siam ceded a piece of territory on the mainland opposite Penang to Great Britain. The territory became known as Province Wellesley (known as Seberang Perai today). The treaty also defined the border between British and Siamese territory and this border remains the boundary line between Penang and Kedah today, although both are now constituent states of Malaysia.

On 9 July 1909, Great Britain and Siam signed another agreement in Bangkok. Known as the Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909, the agreement ceded the states of Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu to Great Britain while Pattani remained in Siamese hands. The treaty, in one of its four annexes, defined the border between British and Siamese territories. This border ultimately became today's border between Malaysia and Thailand.

Thailand regained control of the Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu during World War II when the Japanese handed them over to the kingdom, thus moving the Malay States-Siamese border southwards again. However, the states were returned to the British at the end of the war.^[5]

[edit] Disputes

There are two stretches of the Malaysia-Thailand border which is subject to dispute. The first involves the land border in the Bukit Jeli (Jeli Hill) at the headwaters of thye Golok River and the second involves the continental shelf boundary in the Gulf of Thailand. Both disputes have not resulted in any aggression between the two countries.

[edit] Bukit Jeli

The alignment of an 8.5km stretch of the land border in the area known as Bukit Jeli (Jeli Hill) near the headwaters of the Golok River is currently being disputed by both countries. The resulting disputed territory has an area of 42 hectares. Negotiations to resolve the dispute through the joint subcommittee on cooperation along the border is on-going. The dispute arose in the 1990s when demarcation work for the land border almost reached completion. Malaysia's former Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar was quoted as saying that the failure was because of the inability to reach a consensus over a formula to solve the dispute. He said problems arose because the geographical features as described in border protocol of the 1909 Anglo-Siamese Treaty had changed.^[6]

[edit] Gulf of Thailand

The dispute over the continental shelf boundary between Malaysia and Thailand arises from the different baselines for Thailand which the two countries adopt in calculating the equidistant line for boundary. Thailand's proclaimed baseline runs from the terminus at Kuala Tabar (the eastern terminus of the Malaysia-Thailand land border as defined by the 1909 Anglo-Siamese Treaty) northwards to Ko Losin islet and then northwestwards to Ko Kra. Malaysia however does not regard Ko Losin as as valid baseline point and calculates the equidistant line on a baseline running along the shore.^[7]

While both countries have agreed on 24 October 1979^[8] on their territorial sea boundary for this area running 29 nautical miles out to sea, the continental shelf boundary beyond the northeastern terminus of the territorial sea is subject to dispute. Malaysia's continental shelf boundary extends from the terminus at coordinate 07º 49' N, 103º 02' 30" E which corresponds to Point 43 in a 1979 map published by Malaysia denoting its territorial sea and continental shelf. Thailand claims its continental shelf boundary extends from the terminus to coordinate 07º 22'.0 N, 103º 42' 30" E. A small slice of the disputed area is also subjected to a claim by Vietnam.

As a temporary solution to the dispute, Malaysia and Thailand on 21 February 1979 signed a memorandum of understanding to create a 7,250km square joint development area encompassing the entire disputed area. This was later followed by an agreement on 30 May 1990. The agreement allows for joint exploitation and benefit of natural resources in the joint development area. In 1999, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam reached an agreement based on the principal of joint development for the area where the three countries have overlapping claims. All the agreements specifically state that they do not compromise each country's sovereignty claim over the disputed area. ^[9] See section below for more on the joint development area.

[edit] Joint development area

The Malaysia-Thailand Joint Development Area is a 7,250km square area in the Gulf of Thailand which was created as a means to solve the maritime dispute between the two countries. The formula allows for both countries to share the non-living natural resources of the area on a 50:50 basis. It however does not extinguish the sovereignty claims by both countries over the area. This is one of the first applications of the joint development principle in territorial disputes in the world.

The area comes under the administration of the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Authority which has its headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The joint development area is enclosed by straight lines linking the following coordinates:

Point A: 06°50'00" N, 102°21'20" E

Point B: 07°10'25" N, 102°29'00" E

Point C: 07°49'00" N, 103°02'50" E

Point D: 07°22'00" N, 103°42'50" E

Point E: 07°20'00" N, 103°39'00" E

Point F: 07°03'00" N, 103°06'00" E

Point G: 06°53'00" N, 102°34'00" E

The continental shelf boundary proclaimed by Malaysian in 1979 are the straight lines from Point A to Point B to Point C while that claimed by Thailand are straight lines from Point A to Point D through points E, F and G.

[edit] Barrier

In the 1970s, both Malaysia and Thailand constructed walls along their common border, mostly in Perlis/Satun and Perlis/Songkhla as well as Kedah/Songkhla portions of the border to curb smuggling. The walls were of concrete, steel and topped barbed wire as well as iron fencing at other stretches. As both countries constructed their own walls a little into their own territory, a strip of "no-man's-land" about 10m wide was created and this strip of land became a convenient refuge for smugglers (not all smuggling was deterred by the wall) and drug runners.

In 2001, the two countries agreed to construct just one wall along the border which would be located just inside Thai territory. The new border wall is 2.5m high and made up of a concrete lower half and steel fencing on the upper half. At the base, barbed wire running along the length of the wall.^[10]

While the stated reason for the construction of the wall has been to curb smuggling and encroachment, security reasons - earlier in the 1970s and 1980s resulting from Malaysian communist groups and groups involved in the South Thailand insurgency in the late 1990s and early 2000s - have also been a major push for the barrier to be constructed.

[edit] Border crossings

[edit] Road crossings

The following list names the Malaysian town/immigration post followed the Thai town or post.

• Wang Kelian - Wang Prachan
• Padang Besar - Padang Besar (Songkhla)
• Bukit Kayu Hitam - Sadao (the border post is located in Dannok village)
• Pengkalan Hulu (previously known as Keroh) - Betong
• Bukit Bunga - Ban Buketa
• Rantau Panjang - Sungai Golok

[edit] Railway crossings

There are two rail crossings along the Malaysian-Thai border.

• Padang Besar-Padang Besar (Songkhla): Both the Malaysian and Thai towns where the crossing is located are known by the same name. This crossing connects to Malaysia's West Coast trunk line and Thailand's main southern line to Bangkok via Hat Yai. Both Malaysian and Thai customs, immigration and quarantine formalities are conducted at Malaysia's Padang Besar railway station.
• Rantau Panjang-Sungai Golok: On the Malaysian side, this bridge crossing is on a branch line which is connected to Malaysia's East Coast line. In Thailand, the crossing is connected to the Sungai Golok branch line which links up with the main southern line at Hat Yai.

[edit] Ferry crossing

• Pengkalan Kubur - Tak Bai

[edit] Gallery

Rantau Panjang, Kelantan, Malaysia.

[edit] See also

• Indonesia-Malaysia Border
• Malaysia-Singapore Border
• Brunei-Malaysia Border

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• See Clip videos Thailand Border
• Thailand proposes security fence along border with M'sia
• Thailand to erect security fence along border with Malaysia