Malaysia, U.S. extend military cooperation pact
Mon May 9, 2005
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia and the United States renewed a military cooperation pact on Monday for 10 years, putting aside irritants which have bedeviled bilateral ties.
Mainly Muslim Malaysia, currently chair of the Non-Aligned Movement and an opponent of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq two years ago, has had some problems with Washington over the past decade but military ties have grown closer.
The new agreement enables armed forces from the two countries to share logistics and supplies, a follow-up to close military team-work during relief operations for tsunami-hit Asia, the two sides said.
"The (agreement) enhances strong military-to-military cooperation between our two countries," U.S. Ambassador Christopher LaFleur told reporters at a signing ceremony.
Malaysian and U.S. militaries hold annual joint exercises and they cooperated closely in the unprecedented international military relief operation in Indonesia's Aceh province, which bore the brunt of the tsunami that swept Asia on Dec. 26.
U.S. forces used Malaysian air force bases as hubs for ferrying supplies to Aceh, off Malaysia's west coast.
The upturn comes after Malaysian-U.S. relations hit a rough patch in the late 1990s when Washington voiced support for former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim, jailed on what he called trumped-up charges after leading anti-government protests.
More recently, diplomatic feathers were ruffled over a U.S. admiral's remarks that were construed as suggesting U.S. forces wanted to help police the Strait of Malacca, one of the world's busiest sea lanes, against possible terror attacks.
Malaysia has ruled out any foreign military participation in policing its waters, saying sovereignty is paramount. Washington later clarified that it had no intention to deploy forces there.
Monday's renewed Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement replaces a pact that expired in 2004. A Malaysian defense ministry official said the brief gap between the two agreements did not signify any difficulty in renewing the arrangement.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick and Malaysian Defense Minister Najib Razak witnessed the signing in the Malaysian capital but made no comment to reporters.
Zoellick is on a six-nation Southeast Asian tour to discuss issues including counter-terrorism and security cooperation, trade, democracy and human rights. He is due to hold a news conference in Kuala Lumpur later on Monday.
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