I

ndonesia should not worry about Australia'€™s plan to significantly increase its defense spending '€” which has drawn fire from China '€” and should see the mounting budget as an opportunity to cooperate in enhancing regional security.

Australia is set to boost defense spending by nearly A$30 billion (US$21.6 billion) over the next decade, seeking to protect its strategic and trade interests in the Asia-Pacific as the United States and its allies grapple with China'€™s rising power.

In its 20-year plan, Australia aims to bolster its naval strength with more submarines and warships as part of a military buildup it said was needed to maintain peace in the region.

Australia said it would maintain its strong alliance with the US and develop partnerships with several strategic countries, stating that its relationship with Indonesia was vital and saying it envisioned the archipelago would be the '€œbiggest military spender in Southeast Asia by 2035'€.

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Ministry spokesman Agus Barnas said on Friday that the neighboring country'€™s increased spending should not be seen as a threat as all nations had their own interests. Indonesia has also increased its defense budget.

However, Agus added, all countries needed to respect the sovereignty of other countries in conducting defense activities.

'€œWe see the increase in Australia'€™s spending as a positive plan that will help enhance regional security,'€ he told The Jakarta Post.

Given the two countries'€™ strong defense partnership, Agus hoped the increased budget would lead to deeper collaboration.

In a defense white paper, Australia said: '€œWe will continue to deepen our defense partnership with Indonesia through: navy, army and air force cooperation; expanding our comprehensive pattern of training, exercises, and operations; more frequent policy and planning dialogue; and intelligence exchanges.'€

It also emphasized the need to '€œsecure northern approaches and proximate sea lines of communication'€ and for '€œa secure nearer region, encompassing maritime Southeast Asia and South Pacific'€ among its strategic interests.

'€œWe will build on the strong foundation of our defense relationship to support Indonesia as it modernizes its defense forces,'€ the report added.

Indonesia and Australia'€™s existing security relationship encompasses the framework set out in the 2006 Lombok Treaty, the 2012 Defense Cooperation Arrangement and the 2014 Joint Understanding on Intelligence Cooperation.

International expert Iis Gindarsah from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said the increase in Australian military spending reflected worries on security developments in the region and indicated that the country aimed to play a bigger role in global security.

'€œAustralia'€™s higher defense spending reflects its regional security concerns and ambition to become a military power in the Western Pacific.'€

For Australia, maintaining stable defense ties with Indonesia was important not only for counterterrorism purposes but also to ensure free and safe navigation through Southeast Asian commercial sea lanes, he said.

Australian defense spending will rise to A$195 billion, 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), by 2021-2022, as the country buys new equipment including frigates, armored personnel carriers, strike fighter jets, drones and submarines, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Thursday.

The strategic defense plan was designed with the changing nature of regional security, particularly China'€™s economic and military rise and an increased US focus on the Asia-Pacific, in mind, Turnbull said.

Following the plan, Chinese officials said they were '€œseriously concerned'€ by an Australian strategic evaluation of the South China Sea and warned Australia against compromising the stability of the Asia-Pacific region.