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By Prashanth Parameswaran
A senior adviser to Indonesia’s new president insists the country’s sovereignty is not up for negotiation.
Indonesia will remain firm in protecting its sovereignty on maritime issues ranging from the South China Sea to illegal fishing, a senior adviser to Indonesian president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Tuesday.
“The sovereignty of Indonesia cannot be negotiated…we are very, very firm on this,” Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, former commander of the Indonesian special forces, told an audience at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank based in Washington, D.C.
On the South China Sea issue, Luhut said that while Indonesia could help in “bridging” differences between ASEAN claimant states and China, it would also not shy away from exploiting resources in what it viewed as its own waters. This was especially true of the resource-rich Natuna islands, where Indonesia has been concerned that a portion of its surrounding waters overlap within China’s expansive nine-dash line claim.
“Regarding the Natuna, we understand very much this is the territory of Indonesia, and I don’t think there are any problems so far. I think we are going to do exploration for…gas,” Luhut added.
Read the full story at The Diplomat