RI, Malaysia navies make peace following Ambalat incident
RI, Malaysia navies make peace following Ambalat incident
Fadli and Rendi Witular, The Jakarta Post/Batam/Jakarta
The Indonesian and Malaysian navies reached a truce on Friday
over an incident involving their warships, but both would
maintain their presence in the disputed border maritime area of
Ambalat off east Kalimantan.
The two sides pledged better communications to prevent a
repeat of the confrontation that has prompted Kuala Lumpur to
issue a protest note.
"We consider the row over," Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff
Vice Adm. Slamet Soebijanto said after an informal meeting with
his Malaysian counterpart Adm. Mohamad Anwar Mohamad Nur.
The two met in casual attire, in accordance with the informal
status of the two-hour talks held behind closed doors at the
Batam naval base.
Anwar said there would be no pullout of warships following the
incident, but that the two navies would not increase their
presence in the disputed area.
On April 8 Slamet said Indonesian Navy vessel KRI Tedung Naga
was hit three times as it was trying to drive away the Malaysian
warship KD Rencong in Karang Unarang waters near Ambalat, where
Indonesia is constructing a lighthouse. The Malaysian navy,
however, referred to the collision as a "brush".
In 2002, Malaysia beat Indonesia in a legal fight at the
International Court of Justice for sovereignty over the islands
of Sipadan and Ligitan, which lie close to the disputed maritime
area.
Slamet said both sides were considering joint patrols in the
disputed waters that are believed to be rich in oil and gas. He
also asserted that the Indonesian Navy would not be conducting an
investigation into the cause of the incident.
Anwar said nobody was to blame for the brushes as personnel on
both sides in the field were just doing their duty for their
respective countries.
"They were doing their jobs and the incident was just
unexpected," he said.
Both navy chiefs said they would brief their personnel to
exercise restraint and respect each other to make sure the
incident would not recur.
The two navies regularly hold joint exercises code named
Malindo.
The peace agreement came as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
asserted that his government was serious in defending national
interests in the potentially oil-rich area.
"It's clear ... Indonesia is convinced the disputed area of
Ambalat belongs to Indonesia," Susilo said in an address to the
National Resilience Institute in Jakarta.
"I have already spoken several times to Malaysian Prime
Minister Abdullah Badawi, my good friend with whom I am very
close. But what is clear that we will not sacrifice our
sovereignty, our rights and our territory."
Both nations have agreed to settle the dispute peacefully.
Delegates of the two countries will resume talks in Kuala Lumpur
next month.