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Netherlands, RI maintain naval ties
Historical friendship: Commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy Vice Adm
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span class="caption">Historical friendship: Commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy Vice Adm. Matthieu Borsboom (center) presents the Prins Hendrik medal of honor to the Indonesian Navy, represented by Indonesian Navy chief of staff Adm. Marsetio (left) in an event to commemorate the Battle of the Java Sea, commemorated every year on Feb. 27, in Surabaya, Thursday. The medal is meant to honor cooperation and friendship between the two countries. JP/Indra Hapsaputra
The Royal Netherlands Navy (RNN) is committed to increasing cooperation with the Indonesian Navy in various sectors, Navy chief of staff Adm. Marsetio said on Thursday.
'In the education sector, we are sending a number of officers to study with the RNN,' he told The Jakarta Post after receiving the Prins Hendrik medal of honor on behalf of the Navy, in honor of the cooperation between the two navies.
'We also have cooperation in the procurement of new warships such as the SIGMA corvettes and a guided-missile destroyer escort [PKR].'
The medal was handed over by the RNN commander Vice Adm. Matthieu Borsboom on the KRI Ahmad Yani-351 which was berthed at the Madura Pier in the Eastern Fleet headquarters in Surabaya.
Also attending the ceremony was Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia Tjeerd de Zwaan and Eastern Fleet commander Rear Adm. Agung Pramono. The Prins Hendrik medal of honor has been awarded since 1998 to individuals or institutions who have made an exceptional contributions to the RNN. 'I hope the cooperation between TNI AL [Navy] and the RNN can thrive and be constructive and increase in the future,' Marsetio said.
He added that Navy was the second institution to receive the medal after the British Royal Navy, which received it in 2010.
'Indonesia is the second country to get the medal with the UK the first. This is natural because the UK and the Netherlands are neighbors.'
Meanwhile, Borsboom said the RNN had been cooperating with the Navy for almost 30 years with significant benefits.
There are a number of Indonesian loan words that are still in use in the RNN such as 'barang' (goods), 'baru' (new) and 'Atjeh jasje' (Aceh military coat). On Wednesdays, Indonesian-style dinners are served aboard all Dutch warships.
The KRI Ahmad Yani-351 is the leading vessel of six Ahmad Yani-class frigates. The warships were formerly Van Speijk-class frigates of the RNN.
The Navy operates four Diponegoro-class SIGMA corvettes and a SIGMA PKR is currently under construction by Dutch shipbuilder Damen Group with the involvement of state-owned shipyard PT PAL.
Before the medal award ceremony, Borsboom led a ceremony at the Kembang Kuning Ereveld cemetery to commemorate the Battle of the Java Sea, which took place on Feb. 27, 1942. The battle saw the annihilation of the Allied forces by an Imperial Japanese fleet, which allowed Japan to occupy the then Dutch East Indies largely unopposed.
Previously, Borsboom had conducted a series of courtesy calls to Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro, the Indonesian Military chief Gen. Moeldoko and Marsetio.
Novan Iman Santosa contributed to this article from Jakarta
