The United States has vowed it will not interfere with the sovereignty of the coastal states of the piracy-prone Malacca Straits, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak said today.

The US "respects the sovereignty of the littoral states who have the right over the Malacca Strait, and that they have no intention to do anything that will jeopardise that principle," Najib, who is also defence minister, said after talks with US Pacific Fleet Commander, Admiral Gary Roughead.

Malaysia has repeatedly rejected the prospect of US anti-terrorism patrols being mounted in the Malacca Straits, and has criticised neighbouring Singapore in the past for apparently suggesting it was incapable of guarding the waterway.

However, last year Najib said that the nations bordering the strait were seeking US involvement in a supporting role, by providing aircraft for aerial patrols.

Capacity building

The minister said today that the United States commended Malaysia's efforts to guarantee security along the strategic waterway and has also offered "cooperation in terms of capacity building".

"He is satisfied with Malaysia's role in safeguarding peace and security in the region, particularly with developments in safeguarding the Malacca Strait," he said.

Top US military commander in the Asia-Pacific region, Admiral Thomas Fargo, said in 2004 that the US was considering the possibility of deploying US troops in the Straits as part of its counter-terrorism efforts in Southeast Asia.

Malaysia and the United States later mended fences after the dispute, with Fargo saying that such intervention "has never been the intention of the US" and that Washington respected Malaysia's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The Malacca Strait is one of the world's most important waterways, with 50,000 ships carrying about one-third of the globe's trade passing through it each year.

However the waterway, shared by Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore, is notoriously vulnerable to pirate attacks and governments in the region also fear it could be a target for terrorists.

The three countries last year launched coordinated military air patrols to boost efforts to counter piracy and terrorism in the straits.