Indonesia, Malaysia pledge peaceful end to territorial row

Indonesia and Malaysia pledged a peaceful end to a territorial row that has seen warships and planes deployed to oil-rich waters off the coast of Borneo in one of the worst diplomatic incidents between the countries in decades, AFP reported Thursday.

In late night talks in Jakarta, the foreign ministers of both nations agreed to stand down following a military escalation which erupted after Malaysia last month granted an oil exploration concession in disputed waters.

A joint statement issued by Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda and his Malaysian counterpart Syer Hamid Albar said the two sides would "take necessary steps" to ease the recent tensions.

"The president of Indonesia and the prime minister of Malaysia have decided to use peaceful means in addressing the problem relating to the maritime border of the two countries particularly in the Sulawesi Sea," it said.

Warships from both countries have come into close contact in the area east of Borneo several times since February 16 when energy giant Shell was given a concession in the area by Malaysia's state oil company Petronas.

Jakarta says Kuala Lumpur's sovereignty in the area extends only about 19 kilometers (12 miles) from Malaysia's Sipadan and Ligitan islands and the blocks awarded by Petronas are outside this zone.

Protestors, already riled by Malaysia's expulsion of Indonesian migrant workers, have gathered in major cities, volunteering to fight and demanding that the country mobilises to "crush Malaysia".

Indonesian hackers also launched attacks on Malaysian government websites, defacing Internet pages with defiant slogans and Indonesian flags.

Malaysia has accused the Indonesian media of trying to blow the issue out of proportion, while observers say Jakarta is using the issue to detract from problems at home, including an unpopular fuel price hike.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who toured islands near the disputed area on Tuesday, has played down the incident, saying it would not affect cordial ties with Kuala Lumpur.

Singaporean Foreign Minister George Yeo, visiting Indonesia for an Association of Southeast Asia Nations and European Union (news - web sites) ministers' meeting, said he believed the issue could be resolved without harming regional unity.

"This is a bilateral problem, but I think they will resolve this problem according to the direction given by their leaders but in the framework of ASEAN," he said.

According to the foreign ministers' statement, the two sides would organize a "technical team" with representatives from both sides to discuss the problem on a regular basis beginning March 22.

The two countries have locked horns over the territory before. A dispute over the ownership of Sipadan and Ligitan island ended in December 2002 with an International Court of Justice ruling that the islands belong to Malaysia.

Indonesia declared war against Malaysia following sporadic tensions over the future of Borneo island in 1963 after the British relinquished control. The conflict ended three years later as Jakarta focused on internal problems.

Indonesian navy spokesman Rear Admiral Malik Yusuf said Wednesday that five of its vessels had pulled out of the disputed region but could be redeployed again if necessary.

"We have withdrawn five ships. But they can be dispatched again in the area when the situation requires," Yusuf told told AFP, adding that Malaysia too had two warships in the area.(*)