You don't have to pass Malacca strait going from South China Sea to the Indian Ocean you pass Sunda straits bypassing Melacca
China oil import is around 8 million barrel The Russian and Cental asia pipeline is sround 1 million barrel add to that the Myanmar oil pipeline you get around 1.25 million barrel that is 15% of Chinese import
Plan is a foot to double the Russian and Myanmar pipe line so in the next decade it will be 30% or Chinese import
Melacca port development is still on going
Malaysia can't afford to cancel the project because the penalty is huge something like 5 billion dollar if they do it
Mahathir went to China asking for cancellation but to no avail The Chinese is non commit-ant
So he postponed it The east coast railway and Kuantan port but not Melacca
But Mahathir is only caretaker premier His tenure will end in 2 years and Anwar will take over the reign
So the project will be revive Anwar just went to China recently and he sounded more friendly toward China then Mahathir which is very prickly nationalist
Melacca was vassal state of China and has historic relation with China going back to 15th century
If not for China Melacca will be absorbed by the Thai or Vietnamese At one time the Vietnamese attack and burn Melacca then the Chinese emperor order Vietnam to get out of Melacca
Here the diplomat article on the subject
Melaka, Malaysia: Chinese History, Chinese Future?
Kuala Lumpur may have concerns about the Belt and Road, but Chinese projects in Melaka are continuing apace.
By Peter Ford
October 31, 2018
MELAKA, MALAYSIA — While Melaka’s Portuguese, Dutch, and British architecture draws many of the crowds to the UNESCO World Heritage city in southern Malaysia, Melaka’s Chinese history is just as fascinating, as is its modern relationship with China.
As the new government of Mahathir Bin Mohamad works to stamp its authority on Malaysia amid the
against his predecesor Najib Razak, the former government’s trade and development deals made with China have come up for review, and in some cases
. This has included three projects that fell under China’s ambitious Belt and Road trade and infrastructure development program: the East Coast Rail Link, Multi-Product Pipeline, and Trans-Sabah Gas Pipeline.
In Melaka, Chinese-supported construction is well underway, and appears unaffected by the change in government. The massive reclamation project along the city’s coast, including the creation of four islands for housing, offices, and a deep-water port, has not been stopped, and is having a large impact on the city and among its ethnically Chinese residents, explained Yam, a retired businessman now selling coconuts at the historic Portuguese-era St. John Fort.
“The Chinese came here first in 1400-something, then the Portuguese in 1500-something, the Dutch in 1600-something, and finally the British in 1700-something. Now the Chinese are back,” Yam said. His own father had come to Melaka from China in the 1920s.
“All of this is Chinese,” he noted, pointing in the direction of the new islands being constructed. “They are the only one investing in Malaysia. So long as they bring money I don’t mind. But not everyone is happy,” he added. According to Yam, Malay bureaucratic nepotism is fueling corruption in the city, and the vast sums of money spent on the projects are not improving local services or job prospects, especially among the 30 percent of the city residents of Chinese ethnicity.
Shaw apartments, mall, and aquarium tower over the traditional Malay bungalows of Kampong Morten. Photo by Peter Ford.
When the Portuguese conquered Melaka in 1511, the sultanate had already been trading with China for over 100 years. The sultan had married a daughter of the Ming Emperor of China, who brought some 500 staff, maids, and attendants with her.
“The Chinese development in Melaka helps to slingshot Melaka in making [the city] great again in the marine and port industries,” explained Nazary Ahmad, former CEO of Melaka River and Coastal Development Corporation, who was recently ousted following the change in government.
“It does benefit the residents in many ways, one of it is creating more jobs opportunities,” he noted in an email.
But outside of manual jobs and concrete sales, the direct value to city residents of the new construction is unclear. The only completed building on Melaka Island drawing any visitors is the Melaka Straits Mosque, built on stilts to give it a floating appearance at high tide, and gaudily lit up at night. Whole neighborhoods of apartments and shops lie abandoned, with “for sale” and “to let” signs optimistically plastered to boarded up windows. The newly constructed faux-European The Riveria sits unused, yet towering over everything is the vast shell of a new mega hotel under construction.
