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South China Sea dispute a potential rift in RI-China ties: Envoy
Illegal Chinese vessels entering Indonesian waters in the South China Sea pose a challenge to the bilateral relations between Jakarta and Beijing, says a former envoy
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llegal Chinese vessels entering Indonesian waters in the South China Sea pose a challenge to the bilateral relations between Jakarta and Beijing, says a former envoy.
Former Indonesian ambassador to China Sudrajat, said Monday the dispute over the illegal activities by Chinese vessels should be settled immediately before sparking a bigger rift.
Last year, six Chinese fishing vessels entered the Natuna waters, Indonesian territory in the South China Sea. Some classified reports said the vessels were also equipped with weaponry systems, but Sudrajat stopped short of confirming the reports.
“China has said the Natuna waters in the South China Sea is their traditional fishing territory,” Sudrajat, who ended his tenure as ambassador to China late last year after serving for four years, told a forum at the Foreign Ministry.
Sudrajat said China did not claim the territory as theirs, but both countries needed to confirm their territorial borders to avoid further disputes.
He said China had drawn their own maritime border line that left their claims over the Natuna waters open.
Sudrajat said there had been no negotiations with China on how to end the dispute so far.
Jakarta settled the territorial dispute in the South China Sea with Vietnam in 2003 after negotiations that first started in 1978.
Indonesia and China signed a strategic partnership in 2005, which has been translated into various forms of agreements, among others, a defense cooperation in 2007 and an extradition agreement in 2009. China and Indonesia also have free trade agreements under ASEAN, which is expected to booost the bilateral trade figure which stood at US$30 billion in 2008.
Besides the illegal vessel dispute, Falun Gong activities and the arrival of Taiwanese officials in Indonesia are also other issues that could put bilateral relations at risk, said Sudrajat.
The Chinese government classifies Falun Gong as a dissenting political movement although the group is known here as a spiritual group with little influence.
Indonesia recognizes the one China policy and Jakarta does not have any diplomatic relations with Taiwan although the latter has a trade office in Jakarta.
Also speaking at Monday’s session was Hazairin Pohan, former Indonesian ambassador to Poland.
Hazairin said Indonesia and Poland could enhance relations through cooperation in the defense industry sectors as Indonesia has been facing financial difficulties in upgrading its aging military weapons.
He said the implementation of the export credit from Poland’s government to finance the purchasing of military and non-military equipment was only done partly pending approval from the Indonesian House of Representatives and legal instrument to facilitate the transfer of technology from Poland to Indonesia under the export credit scheme.
Poland has allocated two phases of export credit; first for the period of 2004-2006 with a total of $145 million and second term for 2006-2007, totaling $260 million.
