Asia-Pacific calm about security: KL

Asia-Pacific calm about security: KL

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters): Asia-Pacific countries are complacent about security in their region and must be on their guard against potential crises, Malaysian deputy prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said on Tuesday.

Abdullah told an Asia-Pacific round table on "Confidence building and conflict reduction" that China and Taiwan, the Korean peninsula and the South China Sea were all potential flashpoints.

"The Asia-Pacific community, I think, must awaken itself from its complacency. We must recognize that the region is again heading toward what looks like a major crisis in the making," he said, in an opening address.

Abdullah identified territorial and reunification disputes as the most likely causes of volatility. "No conflict triggers as much violence or precipitates as much militarization as does conflict over territory," he said.