RI, Malaysia play down terror threat in Malacca Strait
RI, Malaysia play down terror threat in Malacca Strait
Adianto P. Simamora, Jakarta
Indonesia and Malaysia on Friday declared there was no threat to
ships from terrorists in the Strait of Malacca, one of the
world's busiest sea lanes.
The two countries also jointly rejected the offer of the
United States to help patrol the 800-kilometer strait in order to
prevent terrorist attacks in the waterway.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda and his Malaysian
counterpart, Syed Hamid Albar, made the comments after their
bilateral talks on Friday in Jakarta.
"We are not worried that crimes (in the strait) have any
involvement with terrorism," Hassan said.
Syed Hamid concurred, saying that based on data from the past
six months, there had been no recorded incidents of terrorism in
the strait.
"The strait is relatively safe if compared with other places
under threat. During the past six months there was only one
incident of piracy, and there have been no recorded incidents of
terrorism -- so why we are talking about terrorism," he said.
The U.S. and Singapore have recently expressed concern the
Malacca and the Singapore straits may be vulnerable to terror
strikes that could choke vital international shipping routes
between East Asia and the West.
Hassan and Syed Hamid rejected the involvement of any third
parties patrolling the Strait of Malacca, which runs between
Malaysia and Indonesia, without the consultation of the two
countries.
"Malaysia and Indonesia again reiterate their rights and
sovereignty as maritime countries to guarantee the security and
safety of sea navigation in the strait," Hassan said.
He was referring to a recent suggestion by the top U.S.
military officer in the Asia-Pacific region that American counter
terrorism forces might be deployed in the strait to deter
terrorist attacks.
The U.S. Embassy in Jakarta has said there was no U.S. plan to
deploy the U.S. troops unilaterally in the Malacca Strait and
that the officer was just floating an idea.
Syed Hamid insisted cooperation between countries and states
using navigational waters was possible, but said it must be
subject to discussions with the littoral states, adding that
these states' dignity, sovereignty and territorial integrity must
not be challenged.
He expressed confidence there would be no unilateral action by
any state in the case of the Strait of Malacca, including the
United States.
"I believe if the U.S. does anything in our region there will
be a lot of consultation," he said. "I think they are already
facing a lot of problems in other parts of the world and I don't
think they would want to add new problems."
More than a quarter of the world's shipping traffic passes
through the Strait of Malacca.