Indonesia Urges Joint Patrols With China in South China Sea
Countries with competing territorial claims in the South China Sea -- including China -- should carry out joint “peace patrols” there to reduce the risk of conflict, Indonesia’s defense minister said.
Senior U.S. military officials have recently urged Southeast Asian countries to jointly patrol the waters as it seeks to reassure its allies it will back them against China’s assertions to about four-fifths of the sea. But they haven’t mentioned China as a potential participant.
The proposed patrols would send a message that no single country should “build up strength or threaten anyone” in the waters, minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said in an interview on Saturday on the sidelines of a regional meeting of defense ministers and military chiefs in Singapore.
Parts of the waters are also claimed by Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei, the Philippines and Malaysia. Over the last 18 months, China has accelerated reclamation work on reefs, raising alarms regionally and in the U.S., which in turn has stepped up its aerial and sea patrols of the area.
Indonesia has long said it is a neutral party in the disputes, even as waters off its Natuna archipelago -- an area rich in natural gas -- appear to overlap slightly with China’s claims.
Asked whether he whether he thought China had designs on the Natuna islands, Ryacudu said “not yet” and added China had no right over them. “We have history there,” he said.
Joint patrols in the waters would be hard to implement, even assuming countries agree to the idea. The 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China have been working toward a “code of conduct” for the waters for more than a decade without major progress.
Not Impossible
Still, Malaysia’s Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said joint patrols with China were “not an impossibility.”
“China has more to lose if the region is unstable,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Singapore forum. Patrols by more than one country have been very effective in other areas, like curbing piracy in the Malacca Strait, he said.
In his speech earlier to the Shangri-La dialogue, Hishammuddin urged Southeast Asian nations to reach a code of conduct for the disputed waters soon.
“If we’re not careful it could certainly escalate into one of the deadliest conflicts of our time,” he said.
Addressing the forum on Saturday, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani proposed the broader use of common rules for behavior at sea and in the air in the region, particularly the deployment of a system known as CUES -- Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea. He also proposed greater cooperation on surveillance and intelligence with Southeast Asian nations.
Territorial Sensitivities
“In principle I think everyone would agree,” Singapore Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen told reporters in response. “How it’s done and at what pace, we’ll leave it to the various fora.”
A challenge for countries in the region is to find a way to conduct joint maritime surveillance without impinging on territorial sensitivities, Philippine Vice Admiral Alexander Lopez, head of the country’s western command, said during a panel session. He advocates the development of a version of CUES for coastguards in the region.
“If history is a guide, previous efforts at countering threats and challenges from a joint and multinational level have not been very encouraging,” he said. “Particularly for Southeast Asia, previous maritime security initiatives have been weighed down by sovereignty issues, cooperation rigidity, burden sharing issues and capacity sharing issues.”
Islamic State
Ryacudu, a former army chief of staff, also said Indonesia’s military should play a greater role in tackling Islamist extremists, particularly the threat posed by Islamic State.
Between 200 and 500 Indonesians are believed to have joined the group in the Middle East, giving them new skills they could use if they return. Supporters at home might heed IS calls for violence in its name.
Ryacudu said the military’s extensive network of command posts right down to the village level should be the “eyes and ears” of the state in tracking down suspects.
“If events are disturbing the people, then it’s a police issue,” he said. “But if they disturb the state, then the military should be involved.”
The remarks appear to indicate a growing assertiveness by the military under President Joko Widodo, who is known as Jokowi. The military had a large political and internal security role under former dictator Suharto, but withdrew after his regime collapsed amid pro-democracy protests in 1998.
The police force has led the campaign against extremism for the past 15 years, winning praise internationally for its efforts.
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Indonesia Urges Joint Patrols With China in South China Sea - Bloomberg Business
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52 Filipinos caught fishing illegally in Indonesia arriving
DAVAO CITY – Fifty-two Filipino fishers repatriated by Indonesian authorities for illegal fishing in Indonesian waters will arrive at the Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) headquarters here on Tuesday, June 2, for turnover to Philippine authorities.
Captain Alberto Caber, Eastmincom spokesperson, said Indonesian authorities apprehended the Filipino fishers, aged 19-50, in April this year after they allegedly encroached in Indonesian waters to fish.
Caber said the fishers would arrive at the Eastmincom aboard the BRP Cebu from Indonesia for a formal turnover ceremony attended by immigration and quarantine officials and the Department of Social Welfare and Services.
“Most of their fishing boats were already destroyed by Indonesian authorities,” Caber said.
52 Filipinos caught fishing illegally in Indonesia arriving | Inquirer Global Nation
