Indonesia to Install Radars to Monitor Ambalat, Tahuna Waters

Minister of Defense Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) would install radar to monitor activities in the country’s waters from Ambalat in East Kalimantan to Tahuna in North Sulawesi.

“All the territorial waters in the region from Ambalat to Tahuna would be covered by marine radars,” the minister said on the sidelines of his visit to Marore Island, Sangihe district, North Sulawesi, here on Sunday.

He said that Indonesia needed the radars to monitor the movements of ships passing these waters.

Yusgiantoro said that the procurement of the radars was a priority of the defense ministry which should be realized soon.

The defense minister said that the radars in the Malacca strait covered the territorial waters in the waterway, so that all passing ships could be detected.

“Twelve 12 radars had been installed to monitor the Malacca Strait enabling us to detect ships passing the waterway,” he said.

The radars that would be built in North Sulawesi`s waters were part of the country`s efforts to ensure security in areas sharing borders with neighboring states.

The waters in North Sulawesi are prone to various crimes such as arms smuggling, terrorism, fish poaching and waste disposal.

Outlying islands in the areas are also sensitive to sovereignty claims of other countries.

The defense minister was visiting two outlying islands in North Sumatra, namely Miangas in Talaud district and Marore in Sangihe district.

Source : Antara