JOHOR BARU, MALAYSIA: The Sultan of Johor Sultan Iskandar Ismail has vowed to find a way to reclaim Batu Puteh or Pedra Branca.

Sultan Iskandar said he wanted to remind all that he had not forgotten his island and it was rightfully under the state's sovereignty and not Singapore's.

"It doesn't matter how long it takes, but I will find ways until the island is returned to Johor," he said in the closing of his speech before the state assembly here yesterday.

He said he was confident the state would continue to prosper and also reminded the people to reject racial or religious extremism in order for the state to move forward.

The Sultan's statement on Batu Puteh caught everyone off-guard.

Mentri Besar Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman said the state government had clearly heard what the Sultan said.

"We heard and listened, loud and clear, what he has ordered," he said, without elaborating further.

On May 23, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Singapore had sovereignty over the disputed Pedra Branca, while Malaysia owned Middle Rocks.

On the other disputed territory of South Ledge, the ICJ ruled that it belonged to the country whose territorial waters the rocky outcrop was located in.

The ICJ decision brought to a close the 28-year-old territorial dispute between both countries, and was immediately described as a "win-win" outcome by Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim, who led the Malaysian side at The Hague where the court is located.