JAKARTA - Indonesia said today it was "deeply disappointed" with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling which granted ownership of two islands in the Sulawesi Sea to Malaysia.

The ICJ in the Hague ruled earlier today that Malaysia should have the ownership of Sipadan and Ligitan islands.

"It is almost unavoidable not to be deeply disappointed by knowing that maximum efforts by four Indonesian governments since 1997 did not bear fruit as we had expected," Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda told a press briefing.

But Wirayudha said Indonesia was "obliged to respect" the ICJ decision which he deemed was carried out through a "fair, transparent, responsible and dignified" process.