Postage stamps and postal history of Brunei Postage stamps and postal history of Brunei This is a survey of the postage stamps and postal history of Brunei. Brunei is located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia. Its coastline with the South China Sea is the only portion that is not bounded by another country; the state of Sarawak, Malaysia surrounds the country and it is divided into two portion by Limbang, which is part of Sarawak. The first stamps of Brunei were the 1895 "Star and crescent" set, long considered to bogus but subsequently shown to be genuine, although valid only
Brunei–Malaysia border World War II, joined Malaysia on 16 September 1963. Brunei remained a British Protectorate until 1984 when it gained independence. Brunei and Malaysia have had long standing disputes over land and maritime territories. However, due to the cultural ties between the two countries, the disputes have always been low-key and deemed too sensitive to be discussed openly. The main land dispute was over the district of Limbang which has been controlled by Sarawak since 1890, while the dispute over maritime territory involved virtually the entire deep sea section of the South China Sea claimed by Brunei which Malaysia asserted as