Indonesia president sails near waters claimed by China

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has sailed on a warship near remote islands in the South China Sea that are claimed by regional powerhouse China.

On Thursday, Widodo held a cabinet meeting with the Indonesian foreign minister and the chief of the armed forces on board a warship off the Natuna Islands in the South China Sea.

His visit came after the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday that Beijing and Jakarta had no territorial disputes but that they had some overlapping claims on “maritime rights and interests.”

Indonesia Foreign Minister Retno Marsud countered by saying that, “Our position is clear, that claims can only be made on the basis of international law. For Indonesia, we don’t have overlapping claims in any form in Indonesian waters with China.”

Luhut Panjaitan, Indonesia’s security minister, said the cabinet meeting off Natuna was aimed at sending a “clear message” that the Southeast Asian country was “very serious in its effort to protect its sovereignty.”

“In the course of our history, we’ve never been this stern,” Panjaitan said, adding that, “Natuna is Indonesian territory, that is final.”

SS