PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia and Indo-nesia agree to seek fresh political direction to keep talks going in the contentious issues of maritime boundary delimitation.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said 15 rounds of meetings were held but more would be needed as the issues were very complex.
The delimitations involve territorial waters, continental shelf and the Exclusive Economic Zones in the Sulawesi Sea, the South China Sea and the Straits of Malacca and Singapore.
He said during his meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudho-yono here yesterday, both leaders had asked officials and the technical committee involved to continue with their talks.
Najib said that whenever the technical committee met, it would be "very, very" rigid, in terms of its own position and stance.
"(So), it is only when they get fresh political direction, can they become more flexible in moving from their positions," he told the media after the leaders' retreat.
The Prime Minister stressed that this did not mean that relations between Malaysia and Indo-nesia were not going on well.
Asked whether he was referring to Ambalat, which Malaysia called Block ND6 and 7, Najib replied: "I am talking of maritime issues, we do not specifically talk on Ambalat."
Block ND6 and 7 in the South Sulawesi Sea is said to be rich in oil and gas reserves.
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