Indonesia doesn’t have claims in the South China Sea, but China’s ‘10-dash line’ to demarcate its claims overlaps Indonesia’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
Indonesia said on Oct. 24 that they turned away a Chinese coast guard ship on the southern edge of the South China Sea, the second interception within a week in the contested water claimed by China and several Asian nations.
The first encounter occurred on the morning of Oct. 21, when a Chinese vessel interrupted a seismic data survey operation being conducted by PT Pertamina, a major oil and natural gas producer owned by the Indonesian government, according to an Oct. 22
statement issued by Indonesia’s maritime security agency, known as Bakamla.
An Indonesian patrolling ship contacted the Chinese vessel, notifying them they had entered Indonesia’s territorial waters. The Chinese coast guard personnel on board insisted that the water was within Chinese jurisdiction, according to Bakamla. In response, the Indonesian side mobilized a patrol aircraft and a navy ship to shadow and escort the Chinese vessel out of the area.
On Oct. 24, a Chinese coast guard vessel re-entered the water off Indonesia’s Natuna Islands, an area known for its rich fishing and natural gas reserves. Indonesia has renamed the disputed waters the
North Natuna Sea, which falls within the country’s 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) under international law.
Bakamla said their efforts to establish communication with the Chinese vessel went unanswered this time. Instead, the Chinese Coast Guard approached and disrupted Indonesia’s survey activities before ultimately being expelled from this area again, Bakamla said in an Oct. 24
statement.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) asserts its sovereignty over nearly the entire South China Sea, one of the world’s major shipping routes, overlapping with the EEZ of Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, the Philippines, as well as Taiwan.
An international tribunal in 2016
rejected the CCP’s expansive sovereignty claims, concluding that China has no legal basis to claim historic rights to the South China Sea. The CCP
refused to acknowledge this ruling and instead enacted its own
maritime legislation, granting power to its coast guard to detain foreign individuals for up to 60 days if they enter the waters claimed by China.
In August 2023, the Chinese Ministry of Natural Resources unveiled a new
map with ten dashes in a U shape to stake claims in the region, sparking
protests from neighboring countries.
Indonesia suggested it won’t back down amid pressure from China.
“Bakamla will continue to conduct intensive patrols and monitoring in the waters of North Natuna to ensure that seismic survey activities run smoothly and maintain Indonesia’s sovereignty and sovereign rights,” according to the Oct. 22 statement.
In response to Indonesia’s accusation, China’s foreign ministry said on Oct. 24 that its coast guard was conducting “routine patrols in waters under China’s jurisdiction in accordance with international law and domestic law.”
“China is ready to enhance communication and consultation with Indonesia through diplomatic channels to properly handle maritime issues between the two countries,” Lin Jian, a spokesperson of the ministry, said at a regular briefing in Beijing.
Lin commented on the matter the same day when China’s new ambassador to Indonesia, Wang Lutong, met with Indoniesia’s defense minister, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.
The Indonesia account of the meeting has no mention of the latest Chinese inclusions. It said Sjamsoeddin conveyed the hopes for bolstering cooperation between the two countries, including holding joint drills in the future.
“I am committed to strengthening our cooperation, especially in the field of defense,” Sjamsoeddin told Wang, according to an Oct. 24
statement.
Neither Wang nor the Chinese embassy in Indonesia issued a statement regarding the meeting at the time of publication. Wang, a former director general for European affairs at the Chinese foreign ministry,
arrived in Jakarta earlier this month.
