Jakarta-KL relations put to test over oil contract
Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Despite the generally cordial relations between Indonesia and Malaysia, a long list of problems like illegal migrant workers, haze, illegal logging and sensitive border problems have long been a strain on those good relations for many years.
Now, a dispute over lucrative oil and gas blocks can be added to the list of thorny issues, which will put the two countries' ties to a litmus test.
Indonesia lodged a protest on Friday against its neighbor Malaysia after the latter awarded two oil concession rights in the Celebes Sea -- just east of Borneo island -- to the Dutch company Shell, Minister of Foreign Affairs' spokesman Marty Natelegawa said in Jakarta.
The location of the concessions are in Indonesian territory.
"It's a violation of our sovereignty," Marty said at the end of 15th ASEAN-EC Joint Cooperation Committee meeting in Jakarta on Saturday.
ASEAN, or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and the EC is the European Commission's short form. The EC is the executive arm of the 25-member European Union (EU).
On Feb. 16, 2005, Malaysia's state oil and gas company Petronas and Shell's local subsidiary Shell Malaysia signed two production sharing contracts (PSCs) for deepwater blocks ND6 and ND7.
Shell Malaysia has interests in 17 PSCs in various offshore blocks in East and West Malaysia.
"Officially, we sent a protest note to Kuala Lumpur on Friday and are waiting for their response," Marty said while adding that Jakarta will not allow Shell to operate in our area.
"If they (Shell) want oil concessions, they must talk to us," Marty, who is also the current director-general of ASEAN- Indonesia, said.
The Malaysian Ambassador to Indonesia Hamidon Ali could not be reached for comment.
Marty said if Indonesia kept quiet, Malaysia would think that we approve of their actions on the oil and gas contract.
"We will protect our territorial sovereignty," Marty asserted.
He added that it was not the first time that Malaysia had committed violations of Indonesian territory.
He was referring to Malaysia's seismic test in 2003 at two oil and gas blocks, which Malaysia refers to as Y and Z, east of the coast of East Kalimantan province.
"We immediately launched a protest. Every time there is a violation, we protest their actions," he explained.
Last year, according to Marty, The Malaysian maritime police of Tawau, in Sabah, East Malaysia, conducted firing practice in the waters of Ligitan and Sipadan, which are in Indonesian territory.
"Not the islands of Ligitan and Sipadan. But the water near those islands belong to Indonesia," Marty emphasized.
Indonesia lost Ligitan and Sipadan islands to Malaysia in a legal battle at the Hague-based International Court of Justice in December 2002.
Last month, Malaysia's Sri Malaka ship chased and fired shots at three Indonesian ships: the KM Wahyu, KM Jaya Sakti and KM Irwan in the waters off East Kalimantan province.
Marty said Indonesia recently increased maritime patrols near the border with Malaysia in order to prevent such violations.
When asked what would happen if Malaysia did not respond to Indonesia's protest, Marty said it would become a serious matter between the two countries.
There is another dispute at the East Ambalat oil and gas block off of Borneo as well, near East Kalimantan province.
Malaysia raised objections when Indonesia awarded the East Ambalat block to the U.S. energy giant Unocal last year.