The Jakarta Post (Indonesia): Malaysia says Shell oil concession within its waters: “Malaysia on Monday rejected a protest from Indonesia for granting Shell an oil exploration concession in an area claimed by Jakarta, saying the bloc was within Malaysian territory” (ShellNews.net) 28 Feb 05

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia on Monday rejected a protest from Indonesia for granting Shell an oil exploration concession in an area claimed by Jakarta, saying the bloc was within Malaysian territory.

State oil company Petronas on Feb. 16 granted Shell a concession in the Sulawesi Sea between the two countries.

Indonesia says the area is part of its territorial waters and has sent a formal protest note to Malaysia.

Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the concession was within his country's waters.

"The people at Petronas know that the area is within our territory. If the area is somebody else's, why should Petronas go in there?" he was quoted as saying by the official Bernama news agency.

The foreign ministry would reply soon to Indonesia's protest, he added.

Jakarta has blasted Petronas' action, saying it was unlawful as the concession was granted based on a map Kuala Lumpur had unilaterally drawn up in 1979, that was never recognized by Indonesia or a few other Southeast Asian countries.

Unlike Malaysia, Indonesia said it had granted concessions in the Sulawesi Sea to various oil companies including Shell since the 1960s in accordance with its internationally recognizedterritorial rights.

Indonesia and Malaysia previously disputed the ownership of two small islands in the Sulawesi Sea, which is between Indonesia's East Kalimantan province and the Malaysian state of Sabah.

But in December 2002, the International Court of Justice concluded that the islands -- Ligitan and Sipadan off Kalimantan island -- belong to Malaysia.

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