Indonesia Had 17 Border Negotiations in 2021 with Philippines, Malaysia

TheIndonesia.id - Indonesia held 17 border negotiations in 2021 with the Philippines, Malaysia, Palau, and Vietnam to strengthen the country’s territorial sovereignty, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi has said.

“Our diplomats continue to strengthen our sovereign diplomacy with border negotiations as an important element," she remarked while delivering the 2022 Annual Press Statement virtually on Thursday, January 6, 2022.

The number of negotiations held in 2021 was higher compared to 2019 when only seven negotiations were conducted, she noted. In 2022, border negotiations will be intensified, she added.

Regarding the maritime boundaries, territorial sea border agreements with Malaysia concerning the Sulawesi Sea and the southern Malacca Strait segments are targeted to be signed, the minister informed.

Furthermore, the technical team-level negotiations with Palau on the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) border will be continued, with the aim of reaching a partial agreement, Marsudi said. Similar negotiations will also be conducted with Vietnam, she added.

Meanwhile, two negotiations are planned with the Philippines, she said. The first will focus on the determination of the continental shelf at the technical level, she disclosed. The second one will follow up on the agreement on defining the continental shelf and the EEZ boundaries in two different lines, she added.

Indonesia has always adhered to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in carrying out maritime border negotiations, Marsudi said.

“I would like to emphasize that any claim by any party on Indonesian waters must be in accordance with international laws, including the 1928 UNCLOS. Thus, Indonesia will continue to dismiss any claim which has no internationally recognized legal basis,” the minister stressed.

Meanwhile, concerning the land border, negotiations with Malaysia and Timor Leste will be prioritized, she informed.

The government will complete the demarcation of the Outstanding Boundary Problems (OBP) in the eastern sector, including Sebatik Island, with Malaysia, she said.

Meanwhile, negotiations with Timor Leste will settle the remaining two unresolved segments in accordance with the agreed principles set in 2019, she added.

Indonesia and Timor Leste’s negotiating teams have agreed that the maritime boundary negotiations will begin after the land border negotiations are completed, she said.