Indonesia’s South China Sea Policy: A Delicate Equilibrium





http://thediplomat.com/2016/03/indonesias-...te-equilibrium/

Navy Carrier Built For F-35s Is Done Being Rebuilt So That It Can Operate F-35s





http://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/navy-carr...so-t-1766741771

India keen to buy Boeing's F-18 fighter jets as talks loom in April





http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/artic...loom-April.html

lelz... rafale also not done yet

Russia Is Flying Israeli Drones Against Anti-Assad Rebels In Syria





http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016...s-in-syria.html

How solid evidence required to arrest suspected person under sosma?

They want to buy every type of aircraft and make agreement with the company to not let pakistan buy the plane.Super rojak air force coming.😝😝😝

they're not buying chinese anytime soon

http://www.janes.com/article/59034/dsme-la...-ssk?from_rss=1

Iraqi forces launch offensive to recapture Mosul from IS





http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/iraqi-fo...mosul-580268093

The U-2 Replacement Is Cannibalized From Old Spy Planes





http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/w...-is-a-cannibal/

Nigerian Air Force Aircraft Skids Off Runway In Yola





[sos]

Launching ceremony of the Indonesian Navy new DSME 209/1400 submarine.

ISIS captures rebel stronghold of Saham al-Jawlan in Daraa – Map update



3 hours ago, the ISIS-affiliated Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade officially captured the town of Saham al-Jawlan (south-west Daraa) after overwhelming the defences of Ahrar ash-Sham (Islamist rebel group) and Jabhat al-Nusra (Syrian al-Qaeda group) during the day.

This move comes as the ISIS-linked group has captured and entered several rebel-held towns in southern Syria in the past three days. Actually, this campaign has seen ISIS double its territory in the province of Daraa in less than a week as depicted in this 2-day old map and detailed article covering the entire offensive.

Reportedly, about a dozen Ahrar ash-Sham fighters surrendered to ISIS as the latter’s fighters stormed the town of Saham al-Jawlan; the rest of the defenders either fled or were killed in combat. Prior to today’s ISIS attack, Saham al-Jawlan was besieged from its western, northern and eastern entrance while only a narrow supply line flowed to Jordan through the southern gates of the town.

Remarkably, the Islamic State has now established itself on the border with Israel and Jordan, while gradually expelling rebel forces from Daraa province. Nevertheless, ISIS is careful not to anger its neighbouring countries just yet – for now, their fighters seem more than occupied with grabbing lands from vulnerable rebel positions inside southern Syria itself.

Regrettably from the perspective of the Syrian Opposition, rebels find themselves entirely surrounded at Hayt (south of Saham al-Jawlan); unless they receive reinforcements from Jordan, ISIS will likely capture this village as well. Meanwhile, rebels must also defend their eastern flank where government troops have entrenched themselves around the provincial capital of Daraa.

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/isis-c...raa-map-update/

someone is going full retard... why dont dare shoot at prc coast guard ship for ramming them earlier...

We shot at Taiwan fishing vessels: Indonesia



Indonesia has acknowledged that one of its patrol boats fired at two Taiwanese fishing vessels earlier this week as the Taiwanese craft docked at Singapore's Jurong Fishery Port early yesterday morning.

The tuna longliners, Sheng Te Tsai and Lien I Hsing No. 116, were passing through the Strait of Malacca en route to Singapore early on Monday when they were fired at.

All 25 men on board the two vessels - two Taiwanese captains and 23 Indonesian crew members - escaped unharmed, though one of the vessels had multiple bullet holes.

Yesterday, Satgas 115, an Indonesian government taskforce against illegal fishing, said in a statement that its patrol boat had fired at the Taiwanese vessels but said this was "in self-defence" when the Taiwanese vessels tried to ram it. then why earlier deny?

The vessels were caught poaching in Indonesian waters off Lhokseumawe in Aceh, said Mr Fred Lonan, a Satgas 115 official, adding that this area is within Indonesia's exclusive economic zone.

"All actions by the (Hiu 04 patrol boat) were in accordance with protocol and in line with existing procedures of law enforcement within Indonesia's fisheries area," he said.

Taipei had earlier condemned the violence on the high seas.

Mr Lee Chang-hsi, owner of the Sheng Te Tsai, yesterday demanded that Indonesia apologise, compensate for the damage and punish whoever fired the shots.

Mr Lin Nan-yang, 34, captain of the Sheng Te Tsai, told The Straits Times: "At first, we thought we were being attacked by pirates. There was no warning at all and they started shooting. Everyone was scared and just hiding, hoping to stay alive."

The vessel had 12 bullet holes, said Mr Lin, who added: "It was so chaotic. Even when I tried to establish communications with the other side, I didn't understand what they were saying."

He said he will unload his catch and replenish supplies before leaving for the Indian Ocean next Thursday to fish.

Lien I Hsing No. 116 was fired at four or five times but did not appear to have been hit. Its captain, Mr Chen Fu-li, declined to comment.

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/w...ssels-indonesia

Respect global law in region's waters, Jusuf Kalla tells neighbours at forum



Indonesia yesterday called on its neighbours to respect international law in the South China Sea for the sake of the region's security and economic well-being in a veiled dig at China amid simmering tensions over a fishing spat.

Vice-President Jusuf Kalla seized the opportunity to raise the issue of the disputed waters when he addressed a regional audience at the Boao For Asia (BFA) forum in Hainan, China. He said there was a risk territorial spats could lead to conflict.

He noted that while Indonesia is not a claimant state in the South China Sea dispute, trade worth US$5 trillion (S$6.9 trillion) passes through the waters every year and that all parties would benefit from stability in the region.

"There's no economic success without stability, and no stability without peace," Mr Kalla said, adding that Indonesia is committed to peaceful resolution through political and diplomatic processes.

"We understand that resolving differences is never easy... It's a tough challenge but it's a challenge that can be overcome."

China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Vietnam have overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea, with Beijing claiming almost all of the resource-rich waters.

Mr Kalla's comments came just days after tensions flared between China and Indonesia over the actions of a Chinese coast guard vessel in waters off Indonesia's Natuna islands. The Chinese patrol boat forcibly prevented the local maritime authorities from detaining a fishing boat allegedly poaching in Indonesia's territorial waters. Eight crew members have been detained by Indonesia.

Jakarta has accused Beijing of breaching its sovereign rights. In response, China says the fishermen were in "traditional Chinese fishing grounds", a claim which further escalated tensions.

Meanwhile, three Indonesian officials are keeping up the pressure on the issue. Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan said Jakarta will evaluate its defence and security system in the Natunas, where the skirmish occurred.

Separately, Deputy Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs and Resources Arif Havas Oegroseno argued that China's claim that the clash took place in traditional fishing grounds of Chinese fishermen was "vague and ambiguous". "This is a new angle of Chinese argument in the region that not only Indonesia, but also other Southeast Asian countries need to follow closely," he told reporters.

And Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said Indonesia is still waiting for China to respond to a diplomatic note seeking clarification on what Beijing meant by "traditional fishing grounds".

Mr Kalla's comments came after Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, in his keynote address at the opening plenary of the BFA forum, listed regional peace as an important ingredient for Asia's economic growth.

"We mustn't let ourselves be distracted by minor disputes. Dialogue and cooperation are key," Mr Li said, without elaborating.

Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh, speaking after Mr Kalla, said "respect for international law and commitment to resolve differences by peaceful means" were key to maintaining stability in the region. He did not refer to the South China Sea.

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia...hbours-at-forum

hahaha... peenoise

Taiwan claims that Spratly outcrop is an island could sink Philippines' case against China



The Philippines risks losing a case it filed against China's claims to nearly all of the South China Sea if Taiwan succeeds in convincing an international tribunal that Itu Aba, an outcrop in the Spratly archipelago, is an island and not simply a "rock", analysts here say.

"Their position is sabotaging our case," Mr Richard Javad Heydarian, a security expert at De La Salle University, told The Straits Times.

Taiwan has been on a high-profile drive to present the 46ha Itu Aba, which it has occupied since 1956 and calls Taiping, as an island.

President Ma Ying-jeou visited Itu Aba, 2,000km south of Taipei, in January. On Wednesday, international journalists were given a tour there. Following the tour, Mr Ma invited the Philippines to send government representatives to Itu Aba.

These visits have made a big show of a freshwater source on Itu Aba, where some 200 coast guard personnel and researchers live. The journalists drank water from a well and were served lunch prepared with produce grown there.

For the most part, the Philippines' case with the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague discusses land features in the Spratlys, in the southern half of the South China Sea. The Philippines argues that none of the rocky outcrops in the Spratlys is an island, which has, as a defining feature, a freshwater source that can sustain a small population. Itu Aba is a rock, it insists.

The distinction is key to Manila's case: Under international law, an island is entitled to a 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone, while it is just 12 nautical miles for a rock. If Itu Aba is considered an island, its 200 nautical mile zone will stretch all the way to the western Philippine province of Palawan.

"That will take the case out of the jurisdiction of the tribunal," said Mr Jay Batongbacal, director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea.

Mr Heydarian said Itu Aba may lead the tribunal to defer its ruling.

"It can say the Philippines and Taiwan will first have to settle the issue over their overlapping waters... Even this is tricky because we have a 'one China' policy."

The Philippines is asking the court in The Hague to determine the maritime entitlements of land features in the Spratlys to show that China has been illegally extending its borders by occupying reefs in the South China Sea that are 1,611km away from its nearest land mass. Given the diplomatic isolation of Taiwan, which is regarded as a Chinese province, Mr Ma's moves serve various purposes, say analysts.

"Since the South China Sea became an issue, Taiwan has been excluded from all official meetings about it, and so Mr Ma wants to take this opportunity to increase our visibility," said Dr Arthur Ding, director of the Institute of International Relations at the National Chengchi University in Taipei.

"This works to some extent because so many people now see that there is, for instance, natural water on Taiping, proving that it is an island... This could improve our chances that the judgment will go our way."

Also, with President Ma set to step down on May 20, he would want to ensure he leaves with an unequivocal statement of his efforts to keep Taiping within Taiwan's fold.The recent developments, however, leave China in an awkward position, Dr Ding noted.

On the one hand, given that China and Taiwan's claims are in parallel, any action to prove that Taiping is habitable will indirectly bolster China's claim. On the other, Taiwan is seeking to elevate its international profile by issuing the invitation to the Philippines.

All things considered, "I think China will keep silent", said Dr Ding.

• Additional reporting by Li Xueying

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/taiwan-cl...e-against-china

If the boat really want to ram them,then why the hell the bulletholes are at the side of the ship.It looks more like firing from the side rather from the front.Hayah illegal fishing in indonesian water,those ships went fishing at the indian ocean,then went back to spore via selat melaka.They didn't even catch fish in indonesian water so shooting at them are totally unjustified.