RI, Malaysia to avoid repeat of gunboat incident

RI, Malaysia to avoid repeat of gunboat incident

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Malaysian Prime Minister
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi have agreed to act to prevent a repeat of
last week's incident in which naval ships from the two countries
brushed against each other in a disputed, oil-rich maritime area.

Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono said both leaders have
also agreed not to engage in a "war of words" in relation to the
dispute over the maritime area -- referred to as Ambalat by
Indonesia -- in the Sulawesi Sea.

"The President has agreed with PM Badawi that such an incident
will not occur again and that a war of words should not break out
at diplomatic levels," Juwono said.

"What's important is that both sides show restraint," he added
after a meeting in Jakarta with the President and National
Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief Syamsir Siregar on Monday.

Juwono said Susilo had ordered all relevant authorities not to
engage in "unnecessary quarrels and diplomatic tension" with the
Malaysian government over Friday's collisions between Indonesia's
warship KRI Tedung Naga and Malaysia's Rencong.

The minister said Indonesia would continue with construction
of a lighthouse and its routine patrol operations in Ambalat in a
bid to "protect our territory".

"Our move in Ambalat is correct. Now, (the number of)
Malaysian ships in Ambalat has decreased. They (Malaysia), at the
negotiation table, have said that our position is stronger than
their's," Juwono claimed.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto urged Malaysia not to "take provocative actions" against
Indonesian troops patrolling Ambalat waters.

"Should they insist on claiming it as their territory, they
should avoid taking provocative actions," he said.

Endriartono said the TNI would maintain its operations in
Ambalat and asserted that it was ready to face the worst.

"We are prepared. Should anything happen, we will strengthen
our forces. We are ready for that but I don't want any further
incidents because it may endanger peace there," he said.

Endriartono said the military did not expect a war with
Malaysia because "it would endanger both countries".

The two countries have been locked in the territorial dispute
since February after the Malaysian government awarded a contract
to Anglo-Dutch energy giant Shell to develop deep water oil
fields in the Sulawesi Sea.

The Malaysian and Indonesian governments have repeatedly
resolved to resolve the case peacefully. Last month, officials
from the two countries met at the resort island of Bali to
discuss the issue. They plan to meet again in May.

The Indonesian government, which last year awarded exploration
rights on one block to U.S.-based oil firm Unocal Corp., says the
blocks awarded by Malaysian state oil firm Petronas are not in
territory controlled by Malaysia.

The two countries have locked horns over the region before. A
dispute over the ownership of Sipadan and Ligitan islands ended
in December 2002 with the International Court of Justice ruling
that the islands belonged to Malaysia.

The TNI and certain nationalist politicians are very sensitive
about territorial disputes, especially after the loss of East
Timor that voted to break away from Indonesia in 1999.