Malaysia is speaking up on the "intrusion" of China north of Borneo's waters, which a Chinese Coast Guard ship crossed. The country has reportedly been taking a soft stance on the dispute in the South China Sea.

According to National Security Minister Shahidan Kassim, Prime Minister Najib Razak would bring up the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a straightforward manner.

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China has had conflict with Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Brunei over claims on the South China Sea, where ships dealing with $5 trillion trades pass through each year.

The report on Malaysia's stance came after Shahidan reportedly posted photos on Facebook showing a Chinese Coast Guard ship at Luconia Shoals, which is located 93 miles north of Borneo in Malaysia.

Malaysia maintained that the shoals in the area are within their exclusive 200-nautical mile economic zone. The country said that foreign vessels that pass through the area will be called "intruders."

"This is not an area with overlapping claims. In this case, we're taking diplomatic action," Shahidan said on Monday.

Meanwhile, Hong Lei, spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, said he does "not have knowledge" of the accusation and did not comment further.

Malaysia has reportedly been dealing with the South China Sea dispute cautiously, as compared to its Asian neighbors like the Philippines and Vietnam, which have been very vocal about the expansion of China in the disputed waters, reported Reuters.

Last year, however, Kuala Lumpur changed its approach on the matter as China conducted two naval exercises around the James Shoal, an area lying inside Malaysia's exclusive economic zone.

Navy Chief Abdul Aziz Jaafar said Chinese ships have kept intruding Malaysian waters on a daily basis since late 2014, with Kuala Lumpur remonstrating to China each time, according to the AFP.

Recently, Beijing has received ire from Tokyo and the United States after it created man-made islands harboring runways for their military.

In China, Senator Dio Wang of the Palmer United Party said Beijing's claims in the disputed water is valid, adding that whichever country has most "power" will win, as reported by The West Australian.

He told The West Australian that he is no expert on the matter, but he suggested Beijing is right in its claims despite dangerous rift with Washington.

"I think China does have some valid claims given the history," he said. "But we don't live in history. Moving forward, whoever has the most power at the time will be the most successful in making claims."

TagsMalaysia, Malaysia on china, malaysia china