Iranian Ship MT Arman 114 And All Crew Detained In Batam After Disposal Of Waste In Indonesian EEZ

Head of the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla) Vice Admiral TNI Aan Kurnia during a press conference at the Bakamla Headquarters, Jakarta,

JAKARTA - Bakamla RI revealed the chronology of the arrest of the Iranian-flagged supertanker ship, MT Arman 114, which carried out illegal transshipment of goods and dumped waste in the waters of Indonesia's exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Head of the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency, Vice Admiral (Laksdya) TNI Aan Kurnia, said that the ship, its captain and crew, all of whom are foreign nationals (WNA), are still being detained in Batam, Riau Islands, as of today, after being arrested in Malaysian waters on Friday week. Then.

"On July 7, more or less Friday, the Bakamla Maritime Information Center detected a suspicious spot. There was a spot, there was a suspicious block. It was before sunrise, so it was early morning. There was a suspicious incident in Indonesia's EEZ," said Admiral Aan at a press conference. at Bakamla Headquarters, Jakarta, Antara, Tuesday, July 11.

Then, the Head of Bakamla ordered his air patrol to detect this suspicious point. Visual results from air patrols confirmed there was suspicious activity.

Aan continued to order the Bakamla patrol boat KN Marore Island-322 to approach. Not long after, at around 07.30 WIB, KN Marore Island reported that there were two Iranian-flagged supertanker ships, MT Arman 114 and a Cameroon-flagged supertanker, MT STinos, carrying out illegal activities in Indonesian waters, namely transferring fuel oil (BBM) from one ship. to another ship.

“Ships have the right of innocent passage, ships of any country can pass through the EEZ as long as they do not carry out activities. After being seen and approached by KN Marore, two supertanker ships were carrying out transshipment. "You can see ropes attached (connecting two ships, ed.)," said Aan.

He emphasized that this activity was clearly prohibited by foreign ships without approval from the authorities in Indonesia.

“KN Marore used communications to order the ship to stop. It turned out that the ship didn't want to stop, it kept going slowly. "As he walked, he was dumping, throwing away waste," said the Head of Bakamla RI while showing photos of waste dumping carried out by the foreign supertanker ship.

The Bakamla patrol boat continues to follow the two supertanker ships considering that the size of KN Marore Island makes it impossible to stop the supertanker ships.

During the pursuit process, the KN Pulau Marore crew also fired warning shots at the top, then at the bow and stern of the ship, but the foreign supertanker also ignored this warning.

"At that time, I wasn't allowed to shoot the ship, even though the rule was that you were allowed to shoot at the final stages. But because it carries fuel, if it is shot the impact is extraordinary. So that we keep shadowing, we continue to follow. "But because this ship was naughty, this ship entered Malaysia's EEZ," said Laksdya Aan.

The head of Bakamla immediately contacted the Malaysian Maritime Strengthening Agency (APMM) to request permission to carry out a hot pursuit while coordinating with the authorities of the neighboring country.

Bakamla and APMM maintain a close relationship, considering that both are members of the ASEAN Coast Guard Forum, which is led by the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency.

APMM also deployed special forces and helicopters to stop the Iranian-flagged supertanker, MT Arman 114. During the stopping process, another Cameroon-flagged supertanker managed to escape.

“Finally (the ship) stopped, then we sent a fast lifeboat to dock. We coordinated on the deck of the target ship with APMM and there was a take over (handover) and the ship was given to the Indonesian escort team, and taken to Batam. "On Sunday (9/7) the ship arrived in Batam, we immediately processed it," said Aan.

He said that the incident had been officially reported to the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD.

Bakamla has also coordinated with other ministries/institutions including the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of the Environment, Directorate General of Immigration, Ministry of Law and Human Rights, Indonesian Navy, and National Police.

"Now it's still being processed in Batam," said Aan.