news
Indonesia arms maritime force to deter Chinese, Vietnamese fishing vessels from entering Natuna seas A Bakamla ship newly outfitted with machine guns. Photo: Bakamla
Indonesia s civilian maritime force ended 2020 by arming its vessels with machine guns amid continuing incursions by Chinese and Vietnamese fishing boats near Indonesia s exclusive economic zone around its northern Natuna Islands.
The move to equip the force, Bakamla, is seen as a delicate balancing act by Indonesia to deal with Chinese incursions without jeopardising growing bilateral ties with Beijing and at the same time defuse potential domestic anger over China s encroachments, say analysts.
Over the past decade, China has emerged as Indonesia s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching US$79.4 billion in 2019 - a tenfold increase over 2000. Indonesia is also dependent on China for its Covid-19 vaccine, with 1.2 million doses of China s Sinovac jabs having arrived in the country on December 6
news
Indonesia arms maritime force to deter Chinese, Vietnamese fishing vessels from entering Natuna seas A Bakamla ship newly outfitted with machine guns. Photo: Bakamla
Indonesia s civilian maritime force ended 2020 by arming its vessels with machine guns amid continuing incursions by Chinese and Vietnamese fishing boats near Indonesia s exclusive economic zone around its northern Natuna Islands.
The move to equip the force, Bakamla, is seen as a delicate balancing act by Indonesia to deal with Chinese incursions without jeopardising growing bilateral ties with Beijing and at the same time defuse potential domestic anger over China s encroachments, say analysts.
Over the past decade, China has emerged as Indonesia s largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching US$79.4 billion in 2019 - a tenfold increase over 2000. Indonesia is also dependent on China for its Covid-19 vaccine, with 1.2 million doses of China s Sinovac jabs having arrived in the country on December 6