Susi Pudjiastuti Set to Sink 51 Illegal Vietnamese Ships

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Minister Susi Pudjiastuti tweeted that the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry has summoned the Ambassador of Vietnam following the incident over Indonesia’s Natuna waters that saw an Indonesian Navy ship barged by a Vietnamese boat.

“The Foreign Affairs Ministry summoned the Vietnam Ambassador. [On May 4^th] we will be sinking 51 foreign illegal boats, where most originates from Vietnam,” said Susi in a tweet on Monday, April 29.

Previously, the Indonesian Navy battleship KRI Tjiptadi-381 patrolling Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) at the North Natuna Sea clashed with a Vietnamese ship on Saturday, April 27, that is believed to have escorted an illegal fishing boat.

Read also: Indonesian Navy Patrol Struck by Vietnamese Ship over Natuna Sea

This incident was confirmed by Indonesian Navy Fleet Command I Commander Adm. Yudo Margono which was quoted by the Navy’s spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Agung Nugroho in Jakarta.

The incident occurred when the Indonesian Navy ship was patrolling the Indonesian EEZ, “Specifically, it happened at the Northern Natuna Sea against a foreign fishing boat flying the Vietnam flag code numbered BD 979,” said Yudo, who also acknowledged that the fishing boat was illegally fishing in Indonesian waters.

A ship branded the Vietnam Resources Surveillance KN 213 approached the Indonesian Navy ship, after several maneuvers, the KN 213 eventually barged into the starboard side of the navy ship before backing off.

IKA NINGTYAS