“US echoes Australian warning against travel to Malaysia,” from AFP, :
The United States backed a warning from Australia advising against travelling to Malaysia’s Borneo coast, saying it was also concerned that terrorists planned to kidnap foreigners there.
The Malaysian Government criticised Wednesday’s Australian travel warning on the east coast of Sabah state, saying that tourist destinations there are safe and that Canberra had failed to consult Malaysia over the announcement.
But the US embassy here noted that several kidnappings and piracy incidents had already occurred in the area this year, perpetrated by criminals and the Philippines-based Abu Sayyaf group.
“There are indications of continued planning of kidnappings, including of foreigners, in eastern Sabah’s coastal areas and offshore islands,” it said in a statement which reiterated an ongoing US State Department warning.