KUALA LUMPUR, Feb. 14 -- Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim has given his assent for the government to establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate the issues surrounding Malaysia's sovereignty in relation to Batu Puteh, Batuan Tengah and Tubir Selatan.

In a statement today, the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister's Department said Sultan Ibrahim also consented to the appointments of the seven-member panel for the RCI.

The RCI will be chaired by former chief justice Tun Md Raus Sharif, with former Federal Court judge Tan Sri Datuk Zainun Ali as the deputy chairman.

Other members include legal expert Datuk Baljit Singh Sidhu, former dean of the Law Faculty at the University of Malaya Prof. Dr. Johan Shamsuddin...