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View all search resultsRiau Islands scholars regret Indonesia's absence in cross-strait SMER deal
While acknowledging that the Singapore-Malaysia deal was a step forward in regional maritime security, several academics in the Riau Islands, which border vital waterways, have bemoaned that Indonesia was not involved in a potential three-way cooperation.
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Indonesian Navy personnel prepare KRI Nanggala 402 for docking at a naval base in Surabaya, East Java, in this undated handout photo released on April 21, 2021, after the military lost contact with the Cakra-class submarine and its 53-strong crew during naval exercises off the coast of Bali. (AFP/Indonesian Military)
E
xperts and academics in the Riau Islands have expressed regret over Indonesia’s absence in a recent submarine rescue agreement signed between Malaysia and Singapore, although they welcomed the deal as a step forward in regional maritime security.
Singapore’s Defence Ministry announced in a release that Republic of Singapore Navy chief Rear Adm. Sean Wat and Royal Malaysia Navy chief Adm. Zulhelmy Ithnain signed the Arrangement for Mutual Submarine Rescue Support and Cooperation on Monday in Kuala Lumpur, during the visit of Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing with his Malaysian counterpart, Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
The agreement was designed to strengthen the two navies’ capabilities in submarine emergency escape and rescue (SMER) in vital waters, such as the South China Sea, the Malacca Strait and the Singapore Strait, according to the release.
Riau Islands province borders all three bodies of water.
Zamzami A. Karim, a lecturer in public administration at the Raja Haji Social and Political Sciences Institute (STISIPOL) in Tanjung Pinang, said the cooperation showed that the neighboring countries were serious about anticipating any naval incidents in those waters.
“They want to have underwater security cooperation, intelligence information sharing, synchronizing security procedures and the technologies,” Zamzami told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
Read also: Guns, goals and growth: Indonesia, France boost defense ties
