MALAYSIA WANTS SPRATLY CLAIM ISSUE BE RESOLVED WISELY

TANAH MERAH (Malaysia), June 18 (Bernama) -- Malaysia stands firm to
avoiding the use of military might to resolve the Spratly Islands claims by six
countries in the region but to use wisdom and diplomacy instead.

Defence Minister Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Malaysia had made a
number of proposals to avoid any untoward incident from happening like holding
bilateral meetings, joint monitoring and dialogues for the countries involved to
come to an agreement.

"Malaysia is bound by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
(UNCLOS) 1982, which requires it to be 200 nautical miles away (from the
disputed territory). Nevertheless, we have still placed our navy there for
surveillance.

"The use of military might must be avoided by all parties concerned but to
use military diplomacy instead as this is better," he said on Saturday.

Tension arose again over the Spratly Islands claim after China deployed one
of its biggest naval patrol vessels to the disputed waters, claiming it to be a
routine exercise, but strongly protested by Vietnam.


The uninhabited Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, believed to contain
significant oil and natural gas reserves, are being claimed by China, Vietnam,
Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia and the Philippines, with Malaysia having built a fort
on the Layang-Layang, Ubi and Mantanani atolls nearby.

Ahmad Zahid said the countries involved were also advised not to hold
military exercises in the Spratly waters as they could cause provocation.

He said a meeting on UNCLOS should also be convened this year or next to
look into the dispute.

On the planned illegal demonstration initiated by the Coalition for Free and
Fair elections (Bersih) and scheduled for July 9, Ahmad Zahid was confident that
Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein would be able to handle the matter
well.

"The Malaysian Armed Forces will assist if asked to in order to maintain
peace and order," he said.

-- BERNAMA