Malaysia's national oil company Petronas defended its acquisition of a stake in Russian energy giant Rosneft, saying it was a "logical thing to do", a report said yesterday.

"Petronas aspires to be a global player and Russia is in a central position of providing access to markets in the East and West," president and chief executive officer Hassan Marican was quoted as saying by the official Bernama news agency.

"We have to be global to survive in this industry. We have the capability to be involved internationally."

Petronas acquired US$1.1 billion worth of shares this month when it was one of four companies approached by Rosneft after the Russian firm launched an initial public offer (IPO).

Strong presence

The listing on the London and Moscow stock exchanges attracted controversy because of the company's business background.

Russian oil company Yukos asked the British markets watchdog to block the IPO because it claimed Rosneft stole its assets but the case was turned down.

Hassan said the acquisition would also balance Petronas' geographical risk as the company already has a strong presence in the African continent and West Asia.