TNI pooh-poohs East Timor war games fears

TNI pooh-poohs East Timor war games fears

Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara

A senior Navy officer denied on Friday that a military exercise,
held recently on Batek island that borders East Timor, was a
display of military might aimed at instilling fear in the
neighboring country.

Lt. Col. Sutrisno Sandy, the commander of Naval Base III in
East Nusa Tenggara, asserted that Batek island was part of
Indonesia and not a disputed island, therefore Indonesia had the
right to conduct a military exercise in the area.

"Why can't we hold a training exercise on an island which is
rightfully ours. I think the remarks of East Timor's foreign
minister are very disturbing," he told The Jakarta Post.

The military officer was commenting on a remark by Ramos
Horta, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of East Timor, reported in
the media, which questioned the military exercise held on Batek
island at the end of last year.

Sutrisno, in response said that East Timor residents should
not worry about the military exercise, as no heavy weapons, heavy
artillery or fighter planes were used.

The military personnel only practiced individual shooting and
dynamite blasting, he said. Indeed, the military personnel flew a
Cassa airplane, but it was merely used for aerial photography, he
added.

"There was no large-scale deployment of heavy combat machinery
or bombardment to intimidate any parties," he said, adding that
Indonesia, the giant East Timor neighbor, no longer had
territorial ambitions in East Timor.

He further lambasted the statement by Ramos Horta, saying that
the statement came from an exaggerated fear, and it was merely
aimed at winning international support against the Indonesian
Military (TNI).

East Timor separated from Indonesia after a popular ballot in
1999. The popular ballot ended more than 20 years of Indonesian
occupation in East Timor.

Separately, commander of the Wirasakti 161 Military Command
overseeing East Nusa Tenggara, Col. Moeswarno Moesanip, said that
the protest was evidence that East Timor felt overly insecure
considering that the United Nations troops may be pulled out of
the country in May.

He reiterated that East Timor should not be suspicious about
the military exercise held on Batek island. Military exercises
had been held on the island for a long time, he stressed,
therefore it was just a routine exercise.