President Prabowo Affirms Indonesia Will Maintain Its Sovereignty In The South China Sea

JAKARTA - President Prabowo Subianto emphasized that he would always maintain Indonesia's sovereignty when asked about the South China Sea issue, adding that partnerships are better than conflicts and respect all strengths.

This was conveyed by President Prabowo on Wednesday in Washington, after it was previously reported that Indonesia and China were planning to increase maritime cooperation, but emphasized that it was not interpreted as a recognition of China's "9-Dash-Lines" claim.

"We respect all strengths, but we will always safeguard our sovereignty. But I choose to always look for possible partnerships," said President Prabowo, who has repeatedly said he would pursue unfavorable foreign policy.

"Partnerships are better than conflicts," he said.

It is known that President Prabowo is on a foreign work visit to a number of countries. Last week, he met President Xi Jinping and a number of high-ranking Chinese officials.

Prabowo, who has been on his first trip since taking office last month, met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on weekends. Maritime cooperation plans are contained in a joint statement dated November 9.

President Prabowo did not directly refer to the joint statement in his comments to reporters, but said he had discussed the South China Sea with President Joe Biden at a meeting the day before at the White House.

It is known, China claims almost the entire South China Sea with the so-called nine cut-off lines, which overlap with the exclusive economic zones of other plaintiffs, namely Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

The 2016 arbitration court's decision, which Beijing does not recognize, overturned China's claim to the strategic waters.