Indonesia to beef-up patrols after China coastguard raises suspicion

By Agustinus Beo Da Costa
JAKARTA, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Indonesia will increase
maritime security operations near some of its islands in the
South China Sea after a Chinese coastguard vessel was spotted
nearby, raising suspicions about its intentions, a senior
security official said on Tuesday.
The vessel entered Indonesia's 200-mile exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) off the northern Natuna islands on Saturday and left
on Monday after radio challenges over jurisdiction, Aan Kurnia,
chief of the maritime security agency, Bakamla, told Reuters.
Under international law, innocent passage is permitted
through another country's EEZ, but Aan said the vessel was
lingering too long.
"Because this one floated, then went circling, we became
suspicious, we approached it and learned that it was a Chinese
coastguard vessel," he said, adding the navy and coastguard
would boost operations in the area.
While China has made no claim to the archipelago, the
presence of its coastguard so far from the mainland has
concerned Indonesia, aware of numerous encounters that Malaysia,
the Philippines and Vietnam have had with Chinese vessels inside
their EEZs, which have disrupted fishing and energy activities.
A weeks-long standoff occurred in December and January when
a Chinese coastguard vessel and accompanying fishing boats
entered the northern Natuna Sea, prompting Indonesia to send
fighter jets and mobilise its own fishermen.
China's coastguard fleet includes converted navy frigates
and often operates alongside fishing boats described by experts
as state-backed militia. China says its coastguard operations
are legitimate.
The "nine-dash line" that Beijing uses on maps denoting its
claim to 90% of the South China Sea includes waters off the
Natuna islands. An international arbitration panel in 2016
invalidated that line.
Foreign ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah reiterated that
Indonesia does not recognise the line and has no overlapping
claims.
China's defense and foreign ministries did not immediately
respond to Reuters' requests for comment.