Malaysia has not yet decided whether to send a ceasefire observer team to the Philippines as requested by President Gloria Arroyo, the foreign minister said today.

Syed Hamid Albar said the Philippines had asked Malaysia to take the lead in sending a team to monitor a ceasefire between the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Philippines.

"I will be responding to the Philippines request once I get the mandate from the government," he said. He declined to reveal when the government would make an announcement.

Asked if Malaysia was supportive of the idea, he said: "If I speculate, then I am not giving the government a chance to decide."

Unofficial talks

Malaysia has been hosting exploratory and unofficial negotiations between the rebels from the MILF, the country's largest Muslim separatist group, and the Philippines' government.

Arroyo's spokesman Ignacio Bunye said yesterday the president had asked Malaysia to send a ceasefire observer team to the Philippines as her government prepared to restart peace talks with the MILF.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople said Malaysian authorities were open to the idea "but they need a final clearance from higher authorities."

The peace monitoring team would be chaired by Malaysia, while other proposed members were Bangladesh, Bahrain and Libya, he said.

Manila Tuesday said it was close to resuming negotiations to end the 12,500-strong MILF's 25-year rebellion for an independent Islamic state in the south. - AFP