Malaysia Wednesday welcomed an International Court of Justice ruling against the Philippines in a territorial dispute, but said relations between the countries were good.
The ICJ ruled Tuesday that the Philippines cannot intervene in a dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia, saying Manila had failed to show it had a clear interest in the case.
The Philippines wanted to intervene because any decision on sovereignty over the islands of Pulau Ligitan and Pulau Sipidan, situated off the coast of Sabah on the island of Borneo, could have a bearing on its dormant territorial claim on parts of North Borneo.
Malaysia's Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said the ICJ ruling was "very satisfying".
"We hope the claims by the Philippines will ultimately be dropped because we are enjoying very good close relations.
"If the Philippines accepts the fact that Sabah is part of Malaysia that will be good for both countries. There is so much that both countries can do together so we cannot have an overhang of something that can create irritants between both countries.
"If we could find a political and diplomatic solution it would be the best."
In 1997 Indonesia and Malaysia concluded a special agreement to let the ICJ, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, settle the issue of sovereignty over the disputed Celebes Sea islands.
Malaysia is expected to cite its ownership of Sabah as the basis for its claim to the islands.
The Philippines also lays claims to Sabah on the grounds that it was ruled by a southern Philippine sultanate in the 15th century.
Manila feared that its claims might be affected by the courts' reasoning or its interpretation of treaties at issue in the case between Malaysia and Indonesia. Both of those countries had objected to intervention by the Philippines.
The Sabah question has been an irritant in ties between Manila and Kuala Lumpur ever since former Philippine president Diosdado Macapagal revived a claim to the state when it became independent and joined Malaysia in 1963.
The Philippines has never formally renounced its claim to Sabah, although officials in Manila have said they would not allow the dispute to disrupt bilateral relations.
Attempts by previous Philippine administrations to drop the Sabah claim have been shot down by the senate and relations between Malaysia and the Philippines have been broken off twice because of the row -- Kuala Lumpur, (AFP)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
