JAKARTA - The Indonesian Navy (AL) held an international scale training for the 2023 Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) in the Makassar area, South Sulawesi in June 2023. This exercise involved 47 countries.
"So this MNEK exercise activity will be carried out in Makassar, namely in the provincial capital of South Sulawesi by involving assets from the Navy of friendly countries," said Danguspurla Koarmada II as Commander of the 2023 MNEK Task Force First Admiral TNI Denny Prasetyo on the sidelines of the 2023 MNEK Initial Planning Conference (IPC) activity in Jakarta, Antara, Wednesday, December 21.
This IPC meeting is one of the stages in the context of implementing the 2023 MNEK training.
"Basically this conference is a process for planning, especially planning for the implementation of joint training with friends. We have invited 47 countries, and coincidentally there are almost 60 percent here," he said.
In the exercise, he said, the Indonesian Navy invited major countries, such as America, China, Russia, Canada, South Korea, including North Korea.
"According to government policy, the Indonesian Navy is neutral. So that we invite the Navy of friendly countries, including the South Korean and North Korean Navy," he said.
Although the intensity of the conflict between the two countries is fairly high, the Indonesian Navy ensures that there have never been any problems during the MNEK. This is based on the implementation of MNEK in previous years.
"We invite them (South Korea and North Korea) together, they are fine. There is no conflict between them when they meet face to face here, when we discuss it too," he explained.
Therefore, he continued, the involvement of South Korea and North Korea in next year's MNEK will not be a problem.
Overall, Deny said that there were 17 KRIs that had been prepared by the Indonesian Navy, including the KRI Wahidin Sudirohusodo-991 hospital ship.
"Of course, the equipment is more complete than the previous ships. We have prepared 17 ships, but they will be adjusted to the dynamics in the field," he said.
The multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) is an international scale exercise that is routinely held every two years since 2014.
MNEK is an activity in the form of non-war training by prioritizing maritime cooperation in regional areas, to get a strong building basis, namely, the trust of each country.
MNEK 2023 takes the theme 'Partnership to recover and to rise stronger'. Through this theme, the Indonesian Navy invites the navy of friendly countries to work together to rise from the COVID-19 pandemic and assist humanitarian problems in dealing with natural disasters that occur in the future.
In addition to the implementation of training, the MNEK also contains a number of activities such as the construction of public facilities or Engineering Civic Action Program (ENCAP), health service or Medical Civic Action Program (MEDCAP), city parades, cultural programs, maritime exhibitions, culinary programs, to the implementation of sailing passes from ships throughout the country that participate.
The first MNEK was held in 2014 in Batam, then the second in 2016 in Padang, and the third in Lombok in 2018.
"So, actually the MNEK has been carried out three times starting in 2014, the second in 2016, the third in 2018 in several areas in western Indonesia, as well as eastern Indonesia. First in Batam, second in Padang, third in Lombok or NTB," said Denny.
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