Navy holds drill

Navy holds drill near Ambalat

JAKARTA: The Indonesian Navy on Thursday sent dozens of ships to take part in a major naval exercise off the east coast of Borneo near waters disputed with neighboring Malaysia, a navy spokesman said.

The exercise, code-named Armada Jaya XXY, will include a beach landing by marines at Sangatta, East Kalimantan province, just south of the border with Malaysia's Sabah state, as well as maneuvers in the Sulawesi Sea near an area also claimed by Malaysia, Eastern Fleet spokesman Toni Syaiful told AFP.

"Most of the ships left Surabaya today and the rest will follow tomorrow," Toni said, adding that a total of 36 ships would leave Surabaya in East Java, where the eastern fleet is based. The ships are to return to Surabaya on Dec. 18.

In April, warships from Indonesia and Malaysia collided with each other just north of the exercise area but no serious damage resulted. Tension between the two countries has increased since Malaysia granted permission to Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell Group to conduct exploration in the area, called the Ambalat oil block, last year. -- AFP