June 01, 2009 23:01 PM

Ambalat Case May Not Be Brought To International Court

JAKARTA, June 1 (Bernama) -- The Indonesian Foreign Ministry said there is little possibility that the overlapping claims on the Ambalat sea block in the Celebes Sea by Malaysia and Indonesia will be brought to the International Court of Justice.

Its spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said the Ambalat case was different from the Sipadan-Ligitan case which was more political.

"So, there is a small chance that this case will be brought to the International Court of Justice. Both parties have decided to focus on dialogues and discourses to resolve the differences," he was quoted as saying by Antara news agency, here, Monday.

He said the two countries had held 13 meetings since 2005 to discuss and find a solution to the overlapping claims on Ambalat, which is known as Block ND in Malaysia.

However, both parties have not come to a consensus and in their meeting in July 2008, Indonesia had pressured Malaysia to expedite negotiations.

The Indonesian media have given wide coverage on the issue again over the last few days following local media reports that Malaysian battleships had trespassed the disputed Ambalat waters, prompting a student demonstration today in Bandung where the demonstrators shouted "Ganyang Malaysia" (Crush Malaysia).

-- BERNAMA

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