ASEAN urged to seek peaceful solution

ASEAN urged to seek peaceful solution

MALAYSIA: Southeast Asian countries should seek peaceful resolutions to disputes, Malaysia said on Thursday, amid a tense stand-off with Indonesia over oil concessions in a disputed area.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is also defense minister, made the remark in a speech at a seminar on the future of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which both countries are founding members.

"If we want to make peace a foundation block of the ASEAN community, it is crucial we walk the talk," Najib said.

Malaysian and Indonesian warships were sent to the Sulawesi Sea east of Borneo after Feb. 16 when energy giant Shell was given an oil concession by Malaysia's state oil company Petronas in a disputed maritime area.

Indonesian protesters denounced Malaysia's move in major cities, volunteering to fight and demanding the country mobilize to "crush Malaysia".

The two governments agreed last week to hold talks to end the dispute.

"We must resist the temptation to pander to populism or to seek short term gains," Najib said on Thursday, adding that ASEAN members should aim to render the use of force obsolete, just as the international community had done away with colonialism. --AFP