The architect of East Timor's independence movement has welcomed the decision by Australia and his country to postpone court action over their spy row and pursue an amicable resolution.

East Timor dragged Canberra to the International Court of Justice in The Hague to seek the return of sensitive documents seized by Australia in a raid on the office of a lawyer working for East Timor.

Postponed: East Timor Foreign Affairs Minister Jose Luis Gutierrez (R) speaks with Australian lawyer Bernard Collaery during a hearing of the International Court of Justice in The Hague earlier this year. Credit:AFP

The documents related to a controversial oil and gas treaty between the two countries that East Timor wanted torn up.

Jose Ramos-Horta, the former president of East Timor, said such disputes often arose between friends.