Malacca Strait States Will Keep Waters ‘Free, Open and Safe’

By Weilun Soon

Aug 25, 2026 (Bloomberg) –Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore — countries that share the primary stewardship of the Strait of Malacca — said on Tuesday they were committed to keeping the narrow corridor and the waters around it “free, open and safe for international shipping.”

The Strait of Malacca is one of the world’s most vital thoroughfares. As the shortest route between the Middle East and East Asia, more than a fifth of the world’s seaborne trade passes through it. Like other strategic waterways, however, it has come under the spotlight since the start of US and Israeli strikes against Iran in late February triggered the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, another strategic chokepoint. 

Disruption in the Persian Gulf has upended global energy trade, and traffic through Hormuz into the Gulf of Oman is still at a fraction of pre-war levels.

“Events in the Middle East this year reminded the world that open sea lanes cannot be taken for granted,” Jeffrey Siow, Singapore’s minister of transport, said at a two-day conference that includes top Southeast Asian officials as well as representatives from dozens of countries including China, France, Germany and Saudi Arabia. “At a time when geo-strategic conflict and economic competition is intensifying, our experience in these Straits shows there is a different way.”

Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore loosely manage the Malacca waterway, working with Thailand, which has a short coastline at its upper end. Ships are not charged a toll, but voluntary contributions help to pay for buoys, beacons, lighthouses and other safety initiatives. 

Cooperation, information-sharing and continued investment are key to ensuring that any tensions stop short of disrupting vital navigation, officials said. “They are safeguards for global trade and energy security,” said Haji Dickson bin Dollah, director general at Malaysia’s Marine Department.

Since 2007, the international maritime community has contributed around US$26 million in total to support navigation in and around the Strait of Malacca, only part of the total cost.

“The recent crisis in the Gulf provides us with an instructive contrast,” said Hassan Wirajuda, former Indonesian foreign minister and rector at Universitas Prasetiya Mulya, who was involved in setting up the discussion framework nearly two decades ago. “The fundamental difference is political.”

© 2026 Bloomberg L.P.

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This article contains reporting from Bloomberg, published under license.

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