Indonesia Defence Forum

[faries]

Beijing using fishing boats to stake claims in South China Sea: Indonesia rear-admiral

The presence of Chinese fishing boats poaching in the Natunas is a ruse by Beijing to stake its claims in the South China Sea, the naval commander of Indonesia's Western Fleet has said.PHOTO: TNI-AL WESTERN FLEET COMMAND

Stealing fish is just an excuse, says Indonesian rear-admiral

Francis Chan Indonesia Bureau Chief In Jakarta

The presence of Chinese fishing boats poaching in the Natunas is a ruse by Beijing to stake its claims in the South China Sea, the naval commander of Indonesia's Western Fleet has said.

"Stealing our fish is just an excuse, it is really a move to establish their claims," said Rear-Admiral A. Taufiq R., referring to China. "When you claim a territory, you have to be there and their way to achieve that is by deploying fishing vessels."

His comments at a press conference yesterday came after Indonesian warships detained another China-flagged vessel and its crew last Friday, for fishing illegally in waters off the Natuna Islands.

China's claim of almost all of the South China Sea has brought it up against rival claims by Taiwan and Asean's Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. Indonesia is not a party to the disputes but grew concerned after Beijing in March said the waters around the Natunas, within Indonesia's exclusive economic zone, are part of its "traditional fishing grounds" and Chinese boats should be free to fish there.

On Friday's incident, the Indonesian navy said warning shots had to be fired to stop 12 Chinese fishing boats but it detained only the Yueyandong Yu 19038 and its crew of seven because it was the only boat with its fishing nets cast at the time.

Rear-Admiral Taufiq denied Beijing's allegation that shots fired by the Indonesian warship KRI Imam Bonjol had wounded a Chinese fisherman, calling it "baseless".

"The seven who were arrested are well, unharmed and unscathed. We fired warning shots only because they didn't stop," he said.

The Yueyandong Yu is the third Chinese boat caught poaching in Indonesian waters since March, said Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti at a separate press conference yesterday.

The three are among 57 foreign fishing boats held by Indonesia for poaching since the start of this year, including from Vietnam and Malaysia. The ministry has sunk 176 fishing boats captured from poachers in the past eight months.

Ms Susi has vowed to continue to be tough with poachers, regardless of their flags, saying 16 more of such boats will be sunk after Ramadan next month. "A thief is a thief, (no matter) where they are from, Vietnam, China or Thailand," she said.

Beijing has condemned Indonesia's use of force and urged that it refrain from "any action that complicates or magnifies the dispute, or impacts the peace and stability of the region". President Joko Widodo has approved the setting up of a panel of international maritime law experts to find a way to amicably resolve the issue of China encroaching into Indonesian waters, said Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan on Monday.

• Additional reporting by Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/be...ims-in-south-china-sea-indonesia-rear-admiral

http://www.cnnindonesia.com/nasiona.../jerat-jaring-ri-untuk-kapal-asing-di-natuna/

 

[faries]

historical claim from China, and Indonesia also have Majapahit that came to the waters in the past time.

Arbitrase LCS Akan Berakhir, Pelanggaran di Natuna Meningkat
Prima Gumilang & Gloria Safira Taylor, CNN Indonesia
Selasa, 21/06/2016 18:37 WIB

Perairan Natuna kerap menjadi lokasi insiden perikanan antara Indonesia dan China. (REUTERS/Tim Wimborne)

Jakarta, CNN Indonesia -- Panglima Komando Armada RI Kawasan Barat, Laksamana Muda TNI A Taufiq R, mengatakan pelanggaran kedaulatan negara oleh kapal ikan asing di laut Indonesia, termasuk Natuna, meningkat tahun ini. Menurutnya, hal itu terkait proses pengadilan arbitrase (penyelesaian sengketa) soal Laut China Selatan yang segera berakhir di Belanda.

“Dia (China) harus menunjukkan (keberadaannya) di sini (Laut China Selatan). Itu untuk mengantisipasi arbitrase,” kata Taufiq di Markas Koarmabar, Jakarta, Selasa (21/6).

Dalam waktu dekat, Pengadilan Tetap Arbitrase Belanda akan memutus soal sengketa di Laut China Selatan yang diajukan Filipina pada 2013 demi mendapat hak atas zona ekonomi eksklusif sejauh 200 mil laut atau sekitar 370 kilometer di Laut China Selatan.

Namun China tak mengakui arbitrase itu dan akan menolak hasilnya. Negeri Tirai Bambu juga menuding tujuan Filipina sesungguhnya dalam arbitrase bukan untuk menyelesaikan sengketa, tapi menolak hak China di Laut China Selatan (LCS) dan membenarkan haknya sendiri.

Klaim China atas LCS memang tumpang-tindih dengan sejumlah negara lain di Asia.

“Kalau mengklaim, maka harus hadir di sana (perairan yang diklaim). Cara hadirnya dia (China) dengan kapal ikan,” kata Taufiq.

Maka menurut Taufiq, pencurian ikan hanya dijadikan alasan oleh China untuk mengklaim wilayah kedaulatan negara lain. China, ujarnya, hendak membangun persepsi bahwa Laut China Selatan, termasuk perairan Natuna, merupakan wilayah tradisional perikanan mereka.

“Indonesia tidak punya masalah sengketa di Laut China Selatan. Ini masalah persepsi (yang dibangun China soal LCS),” ujar Taufiq.

Kapal China yang ditangkap KRI Imam Bonjol TNI Angkatan Laut di perairan Natuna. (Dok. Dinas Penerangan TNI AL)
Pelanggaran di perairan Natuna terutama meningkat sejak Maret. Tiga kali pelanggaran oleh China merupakan sebagian kecil dari total 57 kasus sejak awal 2016 yang tercatat di Kementerian Kelautan dan Perikanan.

Insiden terakhir oleh kapal China terjadi Jumat pekan lalu, 17 Juni. Kapal ikan China, Han Tan Cou, ditangkap kapal perang RI (KRI) Imam Bonjol karena terdeteksi menebar jaring di Natuna. Kapal itu dituduh Indonesia mencuri ikan di wilayahnya.

“Saya melihatnya (mengambil ikan di Natuna),” kata Taufiq.

Selama ini Indonesia dan China tak pernah bersinggungan secara hukum soal perairan Natuna yang bersinggungan dengan Laut China Selatan. Sementara soal traditional fishing ground dan nine-dashed line yang diklaim China atas sebagian perairan Natuna, tak diatur dalam hukum internasional.

“Hukum laut mengatur hanya 12 mil dari titik terluar (pulau). Titik terluar China di mana? Enggak ada (di laut Indonesia). Hanya dia membuat nine-dashed line, maka kapal ikannya boleh di sini. Saya bilang, dulu juga Majapahit ke sini (ASEAN),” kata Taufiq.

Zona perikanan tradisional ialah alasan China atas kapal nelayannya yang mengambil ikan di Laut Natuna. Sementara nine-dashed line ialah garis demarkasi atau garis batas pemisah yang digunakan China untuk mengklaim sebagian besar wilayah Laut China Selatan yang menjadi sengketa sejumlah negara di Asia.

Taufiq mengingatkan perbedaan persepsi antarnegara itu harus segera dituntaskan untuk menghindari konflik.

Secara terpisah, Menteri Koordinator Politik Hukum dan Keamanan Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan yakin hubungan bilateral Indonesia dan China tak akan terganggu karena insiden di Natuna tersebut.

“Pelanggaran ya pelanggaran, tidak akan berpengaruh,” kata Luhut di sela rapat dengan Komisi III di Gedung DPR RI, Senayan, Jakarta, sore ini.

Indonesia, kata Luhut, akan mempertahankan zona ekonomi eksklusif di perairan Natuna. Di ZEE itu, suatu negara berhak melakukan eksplorasi, eksploitasi, konservasi, dan pengelolaan sumber daya alam.

Luhut mengatakan Indonesia akan melihat persoalan dari aspek hukum internasional agar dapat dinilai secara ilmiah dan objektif. Pemerintah membentuk tim pakar yang dipimpin ahli hukum laut internasional Hasyim Djalal untuk menyusun solusi atas permasalahan di Laut China Selatan, termasuk Natuna.

China sebelumnya melayangkan protes kepada Indonesia terkait insiden Natuna. Negeri Tirai Bambu menganggap insiden terjadi di wilayah perairan yang memiliki klaim tumpang-tindih. Anggapan ini langsung dibantah Indonesia yang menyatakan perairan Natuna merupakan wilayah kedaulatan RI.

http://www.cnnindonesia.com/nasiona...kan-berakhir-pelanggaran-di-natuna-meningkat/

 

[faries]

All parties inside Indonesian Government said one word. Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi said that there is no overlapping area (overlapping claims) about Natuna between Indonesia and China, as claimed by the Chinese government. Indonesia's position is clear, it is Indonesian territory. Claims can only be done if the line is drawn with the basis in international law. For Indonesia, we do not have overlapping claims in any form in Indonesian waters by Chinese waters. So we have a clear basis. It's a matter of law enforcement.

China Protes Soal Penangkapan di Natuna, Menlu: Ini Masalah Hukum, Bukan Politik
Muhammad Iqbal - detikNews

Menlu Retno Marsudi/Foto: Agung Pambudhy-detikcom

Jakarta - Penangkapan kapal nelayan China oleh TNI AL di Natuna yang sebagian wilayahnya diklaim masuk Laut China Selatan, menuai protes pemerintah China. Menteri Luar Negeri RI Retno Marsudi menegaskan masalah ini soal penegakan hukum.

"Kita akan konsisten melakukan penegakan hukum di wilayah ZEE kita," ucap Menlu Retno sebelum rapat di kantor Kemenko Polhukam, Jl Medan Merdeka Selatan, Jakarta, Rabu (22/6/2016).

Retno menjelaskan, tidak ada kawasan tumpang tindih (overlapping claims) soal Natuna antara Indonesia dengan China sebagaimana diklaim oleh pemerintah China. Posisi Indonesia jelas, wilayah itu masuk Indonesia.

"Itu menurut Tiongkok. Kalau kita posisi kita jelas. Klaim itu hanya bisa dilakukan kalau ditarik garis dengan basis yang sesuai hukum internasional. Buat Indonesia, kita tidak ada overlapping claims dalam bentuk apapun di perairan Indonesia dengan perairan Tiongkok. Jadi basis kita sudah jelas," tegas Retno.

Soal nota protes yang dilayangkan pemerintah China, Retno menilai hal itu lumrah dalam dunia diplomasi sebagai respons atas suatu peristiwa. Indonesia juga melayangkan nota protes jika ada masalah-masalah serupa.

"Tugas kita merespons nota tersebut atau memberi penjelasan mengenai nota tersebut," tutur mantan Dubes Belanda itu.

"Komunikasi kita jalan terus, hubungan dengan Tiongkok juga baik. Ini masalah penegakan hukum, bukan masalah politik. Komunikasi kita jalan," imbuhnya soal hubungan RI-Tiongkok dalam masalah ini.
(miq/fdn)

Satellite-owned by National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) named LAPAN-A3 / IPB glide into the air with a rocket PSLV-C34-made Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), India. These satellites are enabled to monitor the farms and marine waters of Indonesia, and is used for measuring the earth's magnetic field and the experimental test equipment developed by engineer LAPAN.

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

Indonesia Begins Work on New 40 m Class Patrol Craft


KCR-40 class FAC-M (photo : Kaskus Militer)

Indonesian shipyard PT Caputra Mitra Sejati has begun work on a lightly-armed variant of the KCR-40-class missile attack craft for the Indonesian navy (Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Laut, or TNI-AL), a source close to the service confirmed with IHS Jane's on 21 June.

The variant has been dubbed the PC-40 and retains the hull characteristics of the original KCR-40 platform, including its overall length of 44 m, overall beam of 7.4 m, and hull draught of 2.4 m. Keel for the first-of-class was laid on 6 April at PT Caputra Mitra Sejati's shipyard in Serang-Banten, Indonesia.

However, unlike the KCR-40, the PC-40 will not be armed with launchers for anti-ship missiles.

(Jane's)

 

[pr1v4t33r]

 

[anas_nurhafidz]

Indonesian corvette opens fire on Chinese fishing ships in South China Sea

Ridzwan Rahmat, Singapore - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
20 June 2016
An Indonesian Navy Kapitan Pattimura (Parchim I)-class corvette, KRI Pati Unus. The ship is similar to KRI Imam Bonjol, the ship that opened fire on a group of Chinese vessels said to be fishing illegally in the Natuna islands region in June 2016. Source: Indian Navy

Key Points
An Indonesian warship has opened fire on a group of Chinese vessels, injuring one fisherman
Incident threatens to further escalate tensions between Beijing and Jakarta over the disputed waters

An Indonesian navy (Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Laut, or TNI-AL) Kapitan Pattimura (Parchim I)-class corvette has fired upon a group of 12 Chinese fishing ships after the vessels were detected in waters around the Natuna islands region, the service said in a statement on 18 June.

The corvette, KRI Imam Bonjol was said to have opened fire after the group of fishing vessels failed to respond to instructions given. "After several warning shots were ignored, [ Imam Bonjol ] placed a shot across the bow of one of the 12 fishing vessels," said the service, adding that only then did the fishing vessel that was fired upon complied.

The Chinese vessel, which has been identified by IHS Maritime as Qiong Dan Zhou 19038 , has since been detained with its crew of six men and a woman on the TNI-AL's base at Ranai in Riau Islands. The rest of the fishing vessels in the group successfully fled the scene, said the service.

In a further statement on the incident, Vice-Admiral Edi Sucipto, the TNI-AL's head of public affairs, reiterated that the waters around the Natuna islands region are part of Indonesia's territory and stressed that maritime patrols will continue in the area.

"Whatever flag it is, the moment these ships trespass on a territory under the jurisdiction of Indonesia, we in the TNI-AL will not hesitate to take firm action," said the admiral.

In response to the incident, Beijing has issued a strongly worded statement, lodged a diplomatic protest with Jakarta, and condemned the TNI-AL's actions as having violated international law in addition to jeopardising the lives and property of its fishermen.

http://www.janes.com/article/61602/...Deployment&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

 

[anas_nurhafidz]

Pindad #turret #Division

Working on AMX 13 Modernization

 

[Nike]

Komisi I DPR tolak pengajuan anggaran Kemhan-TNI
Selasa, 21 Juni 2016 22:25 WIB | 2.157 Views
Pewarta: Imam Budilaksono

Hanafi Rais (ANTARA FOTO/Ismar Patrizki)

Janji pemerintah mengusahakan (anggaran Kemhan-TNI) 1,5 persen dari PDB, karena itu pagu yang diajukan jangan jauh dari yang dijanjikan sehingga ketika pengajuannya kami tolak dahulu,"

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Wakil Ketua Komisi I DPR, Hanafi Rais mengatakan Komisi I menolak pengajuan anggaran Kementerian Pertahanan-TNI tahun anggaran 2017 sebesar Rp104 triliun-Rp107 triliun karena pagunya jauh di bawah seperti yang dijanjikan pemerintah.

"Janji pemerintah mengusahakan (anggaran Kemhan-TNI) 1,5 persen dari PDB, karena itu pagu yang diajukan jangan jauh dari yang dijanjikan sehingga ketika pengajuannya kami tolak dahulu," katanya di Gedung Nusantara II, Jakarta, Selasa.

Dia menjelaskan pagu yang diajukan untuk Rp104 triliun hingga Rp107 triliun padahal kalau 1,5 persen dari PDB, anggarannya sekitar Rp180-200 triliun.

Menurut dia, kalau anggarannya 1,5 persen dari PDB maka diperuntukkan bagi koordinasi, alutsista, kesejahteraan TNI, perumahan dan fungsi-fungsi lainnya.

"40 persen untuk belanja rutin, 20 persen lebih sedikit untuk belanja barang dan sisanya belanja modal," ujarnya.

Hanafi mengatakan dari penjelasan pemerintah mengapa tidak bisa memenuhi 1,5 persen dari PDB karena alasan ekonomi.

Namun menurut dia, anggaran TNI tidak bisa diperlakukan sama dengan kementerian/lembaga lain karena TNI merupakan tulang punggung negara dalam menjaga kedaulatan negara.

"Karena itu dalam penganggarannya ada termin khusus dari sisi politik anggaran terutama dari pihak Kemenkeu dan Bappenas," katanya.
Editor: Ruslan Burhani

COPYRIGHT © ANTARA 2016

http://www.antaranews.com/berita/568943/komisi-i-dpr-tolak-pengajuan-anggaran-kemhan-tni

Lapan launches third-generation remote sensing satellite
Rabu, 22 Juni 2016 17:29 WIB | 286 Views

Bogor, W Java (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan) has launched the third-generation LAPAN-A3/LAPAN-IPB satellite witnessed by Vice President Jusuf Kalla at the institutes Aviation Technology Center here on Wednesday.

"The satellite is on an experimental remote sensing mission to monitor food resources," Lapans Head of Public Relations, Jasyanto, revealed.

The LAPAN-A3/LAPAN-IPB satellite was launched from Sriharikota, India.

According to Jasyanto, the third-generation satellite was developed by Lapan in cooperation with the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB) for monitoring crops.

"The results can also be used to evaluate the governments programs in the maritime sector," he emphasized.

Jasyanto said the satellite was on a mission to monitor the movement of ships by utilizing the Automatic Sensor Identification System (AIS).

The satellite, weighing 115 kilograms, is able to identify land use and land cover as well as monitor environmental developments.

The remote sensing satellite has a four-band multi-spectral imaging camera, with a resolution of 18 meters and a swath width of 100 kilometers.

Lapan is also developing technology products that can be utilized for managing natural resources and the environment.

"Lapan will announce the development of the Maritime Surveillance System (MSS) based on aviation and aeronautical science and technology to implement the natural resources and environment management program," Jasyanto remarked.

He said the system will help to monitor natural resources and the environment.

Lapans featured products in the maritime field include the AIS, the National Earth Monitoring Systems, and the MSS.(*)

http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/105348/lapan-launches-third-generation-remote-sensing-satellite

 

[Indos]

Now defense budget wants to be cut.

This is my notes.

Government mess with their own energy and tax policy, and even government wants to reduce gas price without seeing closely on the private enterprises sales and revenue who use the gas. Rich company should not take advantage of any government policy in this tight economic condition (due to Joko Widodo economic team).

Too many fund given into Minister of Transportation. The fund for buying patrol ships should be slashed, too many patrol boats in this tight budget, lol. Even small fisherman still cannot benefit from our tough maritime standing due to lack of industry back up, like freezing infrastructure, etc. This department needs to focus on infrastructure only until government hire better economist.

 

[Nike]

defense budget never be cut, they only proposed stagnant value in which had been rejected by DPR

Now defense budget wants to be cut.

This is my notes.

Government mess with their own energy and tax policy, and even government wants to reduce gas price without seeing closely on the private enterprises sales and revenue who use the gas. Rich company should not take advantage of any government policy in this tight economic condition (due to Joko Widodo economic team).

Too many fund given into Minister of Transportation. The fund for buying patrol ships should be slashed, too many patrol boats in this tight budget, lol. Even small fisherman still cannot benefit from our tough maritime standing due to lack of industry back up, like freezing infrastructure, etc. This department needs to focus on infrastructure only until government hire better economist.

this administration never mess with their energy and tax policy, most of their policy is intended for long term development goals, in which the result will not be happened in near time. the cut of gas prices happened because the low price of global commodity prices, in which the government need to cut the price of gas at home to promote the development of manufacturing and automotive industries.

 

[Indos]

this administration never mess with their energy and tax policy, most of their policy is intended for long term development goals, in which the result will not be happened in near time. the cut of gas prices happened because the low price of global commodity prices, in which the government need to cut the price of gas at home to promote the development of manufacturing and automotive industries.

For the energy and tax policy, there are many expert that is supporting my idea, so I don't need to debate on here. Even for energy policy their prediction to see price go down after doing oil prize zig zag ( up, up, inflation, and then down, inflation still up) is in total failed. And just read Kompas opinion page several days ago talking about government tax policy failure. We should hold high fuel cost that has already been compensated with inflation. Infrastructure spending has more trickle down effect than consumption spending and also don't forget that our consumption was even still relatively OK at that moment. Useless policy, I bet it is done by Megawati pressure

The oil price is going to be up again and this is not a moment for us to sacrifice for the sake of big companies in term of industry gas price. Considering huge money that they put abroad to hinder tax.

More money in government pocket, more money for infrastructure. This is called long term vision since more impact more likely to happen. Our infrastructure is still very bad, even in Jakarta our current mass transportation infrastructure is still very far from being effective that make people still rely on cars and motorcycle.

 

[Nike]

For the energy and tax policy, there are many expert that is supporting my idea, so I don't need to debate on here. Even for energy policy their prediction to see price go down after doing oil prize zig zag ( up, up, inflation, and then down, inflation still up) is in total failed. And just read Kompas opinion page several days ago talking about government tax policy failure. We should hold high fuel cost that has already been compensated with inflation. Infrastructure spending has more trickle down effect than consumption spending and also don't forget that our consumption was even still relatively OK at that moment. Useless policy, I bet it is done by Megawati pressure

The oil price is going to be up again and this is not a moment for us to sacrifice for the sake of big companies in term of industry gas price. Considering huge money that they put abroad to hinder tax.

More money in government pocket, more money for infrastructure. This is called long term vision since more impact more likely to happen. Our infrastructure is still very bad, even in Jakarta our current mass transportation infrastructure is still very far from being effective that make people still rely on cars and motorcycle.

yeah, so many so called expert giving arguments against gov. Policy based on political affirmation, not sure why you are not one of them.

the current government is very flexible to raising gas and petrol prices any moment they felt the prices must following global prices, they will adjust that to that level and they are doing that for the last two years.

Kompas opinion? wow your references is so credible

 

[Indos]

yeah, so many so called expert giving arguments against gov. Policy based on political affirmation, not sure why you are not one of them.

the current government is very flexible to raising gas and petrol prices any moment they felt the prices must following global prices, they will adjust that to that level and they are doing that for the last two years.

Kompas opinion? wow your references is so credible

Expert opinion written in Kompas opinion page my Mado......

Yeah, double double inflation that we will suffer if their zig zag oil price policy is to continue, we are not like USA.

Actually I was preparing to write an article for Kompas regarding tax policy but some one has done it the day after I try to write it, and fortunately he is in much better analysis than what I have written.....

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

South Korea Conducts Wind Tunnel Testing for KF-X Jet


KF-X fighter jet (image : bemil)

South Korea kicked off wind tunnel testing as it moves forward to finalize the design of its next-generation jet fuselage by mid-2018, the aircraft's local developers said Wednesday.

Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI), the country's sole aircraft manufacturer, and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute said they started the first phase of wind tunnel testing in a bid to lay out the design for the Korean Fighter Experimental (KF-X) program.

The KF-X project, which will cost 18 trillion won (US$15.3 billion) of the taxpayers money, will call for the building of some 120 twin-engine combat jets. Seoul aims to deploy the new planes starting in the mid-2020s to replace its fleet of vintage F-4s and F-5s.

A wind tunnel test assesses aerodynamic forces that an object can withstand as well as overall flight properties by letting air move past it.

Officials said that they will conduct a combined 13,000 hours of wind tunnel testing with the finalized design to be penned in about two years time.

The testing is part of a broader effort by Seoul to build a jet fighter that is expected to boost the capabilities of its Air Force.

In May, South Korea picked U.S. company General Electric (GE) as the preferred bidder to supply engines for the fighter jets, while a month earlier it tapped South Korean defense manufacturer Hanwha Thales as the primary negotiation partner to build active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.

South Korea had initially planned to secure 25 fighter jet technologies from U.S. aerospace giant Lockheed Martin in an offset deal linked to Seoul's purchase of 40 of the company's F-35 Lightning II fighters in 2014.

But the U.S. government refused last year to approve the export of four core technologies, including those related to the AESA radar, forcing Seoul to find an alternative supplier.

(Korea Times)

 

[faries]

Jokowi to visit Natuna to uphold RI's sovereignty

Doomed: Seized foreign ships moor off the northern tip of Bunguran Island in Natuna regency, Riau Islands, recently. The government is set to sink the ships, pending a court decision.(JP/Rendi A. Witular)

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo will visit Natuna, Riau Islands province, on Thursday to demonstrate Indonesia's sovereignty over the waters in the outer part of the archipelago, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said on Wednesday.

The President's visit is deemed timely following spats between the Indonesian Navy and Chinese vessels in the waters, which have been claimed by China as its traditional fishing grounds.

"Natuna belongs to the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia [NKRI] and that's final. As the head of government and the head of state, the President wants to make sure that Natuna always remains part of Indonesia," Pramono said.

China protested to Indonesia after a Chinese fisherman was injured on the weekend when the Navy arrested a China-flagged vessel, the Han Tan Cou 19038, along with its seven crew members for allegedly poaching in Natuna waters, a part of the South China Sea that China claims falls within its nine-dash-line territory.

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said Indonesia would not file a counter protest with China. She saw the action by the Navy, which arrested one of 12 foreign boats suspected of illegal fishing in Indonesia's exclusive economic zone, was correct and sufficient in handling the situation. (yan)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/06/22/jokowi-to-visit-natuna-to-uphold-ris-sovereignty.html

Jokowi to visit Natuna to inspect progress on South China Sea

Batam | Wed, June 22 2016 | 03:03 pm

Strong protest: Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi says the government has conveyed a note of protest to the Chinese government over the recent moves of China-flagged fishing vessel MV Kwang Fey 10078 and a Chinese coast guard vessel, which entered Indonesian waters in Natuna, Riau Islands.(Kompas.com/Sabrina Asril)

Riau Islands provincial administration has received information that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo plans to visit Natuna, Riau Islands, on Thursday to inspect Chinese trawler Yueyandong Yu 19038, which was confiscated by the local authorities last month.

Riau spokesman Hery Mokhrizal told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that the news about President Jokowi’s visit along with his entourage to Ranai, Natuna, came to his desk today.

“Riau Islands Governor [Nurdin Basirun] has canceled his other plans and will be in Ranai by today to welcome President Jokowi tomorrow. This visit had not been scheduled. We think the visit might relate to the burning issues surrounding Natuna in past few days,” Hery said.

Meanwhile, Tanjung Pinang Navy area IV commander First Adm. S. Irawan confirmed that President Jokowi’s visit to Natuna was to check the condition of the seized trawler.

"The President plans to see the Chinese trawler confiscated and inspect the patrol situation on the [South China Sea] borders,” Irawan said. (dmr)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/...a-to-inspect-progress-on-south-china-sea.html