JAKARTA - Foreign Minister (Menlu) Sugiono considers the presence of US warships in the region is not new. According to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, such patrols are common and cannot be immediately seen as a sign that Indonesia is entering a new escalation vortex.
Sugiono made the statement at the Presidential Palace Complex in Jakarta, Wednesday (22/4), when asked by reporters about concerns about rising tensions around the Malacca Strait.
"I think they are used to it, patrolling in the area. There is something called Freedom of Navigation Patrol. It's not new, it's not something new," said Sugiono.
He was also asked for a response to the possibility of a United States operation against a tanker that was said to have changed flags and was associated with Iranian interests, and then how to communicate if such a situation entered Indonesian waters. However, Sugiono refused to answer based on assumptions.
"The problem is that it has never happened, so we don't know. Right?" he said.
The answer shows that the government is not willing to go into the speculation area. For the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, what is currently still limited to the situation in the region which continues to be monitored, not a concrete incident in Indonesian territory which requires an official response.
This attitude is also in line with the government's position which is trying to keep the situation cool in the midst of a global situation that is easy to heat up. Sugiono previously emphasized that Indonesia will indeed be affected by global developments, but not all dynamics in the region must be immediately read as a threat to Indonesia.
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