Indonesia Supports Security in South China Sea

Surabaya, East Java (ANTARA) - Indonesia keeps condcuting diplomacy with various countries especially in Southeast Asia to assure security in the South China Sea, defense forces commander Admiral Agus Suhartono said here on Thursday. When met by reporters after leading a ceremony to mark the handing over of the post of navy chief of staff from Admiral Soeparno to Vice Admiral Marsetio, he said that the diplomacy was aimed at encouraging the realization of a code of conduct for the settlement of conflicts. "All leaders in Southeast Asia have agreed on the declaration of conduct for security in the South China Sea. But that is not enough as what is really needed is a code of conduct in settling conflicts," he said. The code of conduct he said was aimed at preventing any eventuality in case military forces were deployed to the region. "The code of conducts among others calls against involvement of a military force in the settlement of conflicts," he said. Admiral Agus Suhartono said that although Indonesia is not one of the claimants of parts of the region the country directly borders on the region and therefore needs to taken an active role to assure maintenance of security in the region. "Although situation in the South China Sea is escalating the Indonesian Navy would not send reinforcements to the area as present forces operating there have been considered sufficient," he said. The new navy chief of staff, Vice Admiral Marsetio, was the best graduate of the Navy Academy in 1981 and also the best graduate of the Navy Staff School in 1996 and Navy Command School in 2001. He was formerly the deputy navy chief of staff.(*)