The UN Security Council expressed its support on Wednesday for efforts to resolve political dispute in Fiji.

In a press statement read out by its president for November, Jorge Voto-Bernales of Peru, the Council are concerned about the challenges posed by the Fiji Military Commander to the government of Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase.

"The members of the Security Council welcome and support the efforts being made in the region to encourage restraint and to achieve agreement between the parties to the dispute, and call upon the Fiji military to exercise restraint and avoid taking any action which would undermine the rule of law and run counter to the best interests of the people of Fiji," Voto-Bernales said.

The president also said that a peaceful and lasting resolution of current political differences according to Fiji's constitution is to the benefit of Fiji and the region, and supported all efforts, both within Fiji and by its regional and international partners, to this end.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan also encouraged on Tuesday the parties in Fiji to continue their search for a peaceful reconciliation of their differences within the constitutional framework.

Source: Xinhua