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After Chinese and American ships were found in nearby international waters, Jakarta deployed five naval vessels and conducted air patrols in the North Natuna Sea.
A naval official said that after Chinese and American ships were found in nearby waters, the Indonesian navy stepped up patrols near the Natuna Islands in the South China Sea, despite saying that these ships did not cause any interference.
The commander of the Indonesian Navy’s Western Fleet, Alciad Abdullah, told reporters on Thursday that with the assistance of the air patrol, five naval vessels have been deployed in the North Natuna Sea to ensure the safety of the area.
“The navy’s position in the North Natuna Sea is very firm. It protects the national interests within the jurisdiction of Indonesia in accordance with the approved national and international laws. Therefore, it will not tolerate any violations in the North Natuna Sea,” Alciad said. . .
In 2017, Indonesia renamed the northern part of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea North Natuna Sea to resist China’s maritime territorial ambitions.
Arsyad said that US and Chinese naval vessels were recently spotted nearby, but stated that they were not interference and added that they are still in international waters.
In early January last year, the Chinese coast guard ship and its accompanying fishing boat entered the northern part of Natuna Sea. A confrontation that lasted for several weeks occurred in Natuna, prompting Indonesia to send fighter jets and mobilize its own fishermen.
After the incident, Indonesian President Joko Widodo declared: “In terms of our sovereignty and our country’s territory, there is no room for bargaining.”
In 2016, after a series of confrontations that year, an Indonesian naval ship also opened fire on a Chinese fishing boat accused of illegal fishing near Natuna.
In the same year, Indonesia also destroyed 23 foreign fishing boats from Malaysia and Vietnam accused of illegally fishing in Indonesian waters.
Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti said her agency sank 10 Malaysian vessels and 13 Vietnamese vessels illegally fishing in Indonesian waters.
China does not have sovereignty over the Natuna Islands, but has stated that it has fishing rights nearby within a self-proclaimed “nine-dash line”, which includes most of the energy-rich South China Sea.
This claim has been challenged by some Southeast Asian countries, and the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague has not recognized it internationally.
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