The Indonesian government is planning to invite sailors
from ASEAN countries and those beyond the region to take part in a joint naval
exercise as part of efforts to improve stability in Southeast Asian waters,
which have long been the site of territorial disputes.
Navy chief
of staff Vice Adm. Marsetio said on Thursday that the Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL)
would pitch the plan during the International Maritime Security Symposium in
Jakarta, which is slated for December. The forum is expected to draw more than
45 navy chiefs from around the world.
“We would
like to give a short briefing that we have a plan to conduct the multilateral
exercise. For the first step, we would like to invite all ASEAN members. It
could also be ASEAN plus two, three or 10 [partner countries],” he said at the
Jakarta International Defense Dialogue (JIDD) in Central Jakarta.
Marsetio
said the naval exercise could help the region deal with a wide range of
maritime security challenges, including territorial disputes, transnational
crimes, safety of sea transportation and natural disasters.
Maritime
security in the region is prone to conflict as several ASEAN countries and
China are in dispute over the resource-rich South China Sea. ASEAN and China
are discussing the formulation of a Regional Code of Conduct (CoC) in the
contested waters.
Marsetio,
however, declined to confirm if the planned exercise was prompted by simmering
tensions over the South China Sea.
“The
important issue is how the countries in the region can enhance their
humanitarian and disaster-relief efforts,” he said.
Marsetio
was upbeat that the planned naval exercise could materialize, as several ASEAN
countries had already collaborated in maritime security initiatives, such as
the Malacca Strait Sea Patrol.
In this
program, naval forces from Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand jointly patrol
the Strait of Malacca, the 805-kilometer main shipping channel between the
Indian and Pacific oceans.
The sea
patrol, which was initiated in 2004, has curbed smuggling along the porous
border.
“[The sea
patrol] could become a template for cooperation agreements between ASEAN
navies. For example, ASEAN member states should first agree upon areas
considered prone to maritime security threats,” Marsetio said.
The
agreement, he said, should be followed by a commitment to prepare
ready-to-deploy warships to respond to any threat or escalations in specified
areas.
Rear Adm.
Anne Cullerre, joint commander of armed forces in French Polynesia, welcomed
the idea of a naval exercise in Southeast Asia.
“I think
the proposal for the exercise is good […] More people will talk and work
together. It would encourage greater cooperation and interoperability,” she
said at the JIDD.
Also at
the discussion, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister
Djoko Suyanto warned that energy and food scarcities could pose a threat to
security and stability in the region.
“Looking
at the rapid growth of populations, leaders must ensure uninterrupted supplies
of food, energy and water for their people. A failure to fulfill these needs
could become a potential source of conflict,” he said.
Yuliasri
Perdani
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