By Stanley Widianto
JAKARTA (Reuters) – A Chinese coast guard ship was driven out of Indonesian waters for a second time this week after initially disrupting an investigation by state energy company Pertamina in the South China Sea, Indonesia’s maritime security agency said on Thursday.
Although Chinese Coast Guard vessels have been spotted numerous times in Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the most recent incidents occurred just days after Prabowo Subianto took over Indonesia’s presidency.
China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea through a “nine-dash line” on its maps that bisects the 200-nautical-mile EEZs of Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague said in 2016 that China’s claim has no basis under international law, a ruling that Beijing does not recognize.
The incidents took place off Indonesia’s Natuna Islands, about 1,500 km from China’s Hainan Island. The exact locations were not immediately clear.
The Chinese ship insisted on Monday that the area is under China’s jurisdiction, Indonesia’s maritime security agency, known as Bakamla, said in a statement.
“Bakamla will continue to patrol and intensively monitor the waters of North Natuna to ensure that seismic data collection can take place without disrupting Indonesian sovereignty,” the agency said on Monday.
On Thursday it said the Chinese ship returned but was intercepted and driven away again. No details were given about what the ship was doing.
Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, said Thursday that the coast guard “conducts routine cruises in waters under China’s jurisdiction in accordance with international law and domestic law.”
The spokesperson added that China is willing to strengthen consultations with Indonesia “to properly address maritime issues between the two countries.”
China is asserting its claim to sovereignty with an armada of coast guard ships deployed throughout the South China Sea, some accused by its neighbors of aggressive behavior and attempts to disrupt energy and fishing activities.
China typically says its coast guard operates lawfully to deter territorial intrusions in its waters.
In 2021, ships from Indonesia and China shadowed each other for months near an underwater oil rig that had performed good appraisals in the Natuna Sea. At the time, China urged Indonesia to stop drilling on its territory.
The latest incidents came on Thursday when Indonesia’s new Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin met with the Chinese ambassador in Jakarta.
The Ministry of Defense said in a statement that Sjafrie expected to strengthen defense cooperation with China, including joint exercises. There was no mention of this week’s maritime incidents.