Malaysia, Indonesia To Continue Discussions To Solve Maritime Boundary Issues - Anifah

By Noor Farhana Ahmad Norain KOTA KINABALU (Sabah, Malaysia), Jan 27 (Bernama) -- Malaysia and Indonesia will continue discussions to find solutions to the maritime boundary issues through the existing mechanism, according to Foreign Minister Anifah Aman. Anifah said the matter was agreed upon during a bilateral meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi at the Le Meridien Hotel here Monday. Apart from matters concerning bilateral ties between Malaysia and Indonesia, Anifah said they had also discussed regional and international issues of mutual concern. "Both countries have also greed to discuss issues concerning the detention of Malaysian fishing vessel by Indonesia; Indonesian workers; and voluntary repatriation of Indonesian workers from Malaysia," he told a press conference in conjunction with the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat 2015 here Monday. The minister also announced that Malaysia would host the 14th Malaysia-Indonesia Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) and the 11th Malaysia-Indonesia Annual Consultation, this year. "God willing, through the JCBC and Annual Consultation, we will continue discussing matters that are important and that need to be solved," he said. Anifah and Retno's bilateral meeting lasted about an hour and was also attended by Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia Herman Prayitno and senior officials from both countries. Retno arrived here Sunday for an official visit to Malaysia and to attend the retreat held from Tuesday to Wednesday. Anifah also touched on the first visit of Indonesian President Joko Widodo to Malaysia, scheduled for Feb 5 to 7, which will also be his first official visit since taking over the presidency in October 2014. "During the meeting, we expect to discuss not only domestic issues regarding the two countries, but also regional issues," he said. The ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Retreat at the Sutera Harbour Resort from Jan 27 to 28, is the curtain raiser to a series of ASEAN meetings after Malaysia took over ASEAN chairmanship from Myanmar since Jan 1. -- BERNAMA