Story highlights Beijing says it "makes no sense at all"

Indonesia will now call it "North Natuna Sea"

(CNN) Indonesia has become the latest Southeast Asian nation to ruffle China's feathers over the South China Sea.

In an act of defiance against Beijing's territorial ambitions in the region, Indonesia will refer to the northern areas of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the "North Natuna Sea."

At a press conference in Jakarta, Deputy Minister for Marine Sovereignty Arif Havas Oegroseno unveiled a new map with the renamed territory.

"We need to continue updating the naming of the sea and report to the United Nations about the borders," Oegroseno told Indonesia's state-run news agency Antara.

"This (system) would allow the international community to know whose territory they pass through," he added.</s>JAKARTA
• Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea yesterday, the latest act of resistance by South-east Asian nations to China's territorial ambitions in the maritime region.

Seen by analysts as an assertion of Indonesian sovereignty, part of the renamed sea is claimed by China under its contentious maritime boundary, known as the "nine-dash line", which encompasses most of the resource-rich sea.

Several South-east Asian states dispute China's territorial claims and are competing with it to exploit the South China Sea's abundant hydrocarbon and fishing resources. China has raised the ante by deploying military assets on artificial islands constructed on shoals and reefs in disputed parts of the sea.

Indonesia insists it is a non-claimant state in the South China Sea dispute but has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands, detaining Chinese fishermen and expanding its military presence in the area over the past 18 months.

Unveiling the new official map, the deputy of maritime sovereignty at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Mr Arif Havas Oegroseno, noted that the northern side of its exclusive economic zone was the site of oil and gas activity: "We want to update the naming of the sea, we gave a new name in line with the usual practice - the North Natuna Sea."

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he did not know anything about the details of the issue, but said the name South China Sea had broad international recognition and clear geographic limits.

"Certain countries' so-called renaming is totally meaningless," he told a daily news briefing. "We hope the relevant country can meet China halfway and properly maintain the present good situation in the South China Sea region, which has not come easily."

Lecturer I Made Andi Arsana, an expert on the Law of the Sea from Indonesia's Universitas Gadjah Mada, said the renaming carried no legal force but was a political and diplomatic statement. "It will be seen as a big step by Indonesia to state its sovereignty," he told Reuters. "It will send a clear message, both to the Indonesian people and diplomatically speaking."

Dr Euan Graham, director of the international security programme at the Lowy Institute, said Indonesia's action followed renewed resistance to Chinese territorial claims by other South-east Asian states. "This will be noticed in Beijing," he said.

Last week, Vietnam extended an Indian oil concession off its coast while a joint venture led by state- owned PetroVietnam commenced drilling farther south. China has a territorial claim in both areas.

Meanwhile, the director of the Philippines Energy Resource Development Bureau, Mr Ismael Ocampo, said on Wednesday that the country could lift a suspension on oil and gas drilling on the Reed Bank by December. The underwater mountain, lying 85 nautical miles off the Philippines coast, is also claimed by China.</s>JAKARTA: Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea yesterday, the latest act of resistance by South-east Asian nations to China's territorial ambitions in the maritime region.

Seen by analysts as an assertion of Indonesian sovereignty, part of the renamed sea is claimed by China under its contentious maritime boundary, known as the "nine-dash line", which encompasses most of the resource-rich sea.

Several South-east Asian states dispute China's claims and are competing with it to exploit the sea's abundant hydrocarbon and fishing resources. China has raised the ante by deploying military assets on artificial islands constructed on shoals and reefs in disputed parts of the sea.

Indonesia insisted that it is a non-claimant state in the dispute but has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands, detaining Chinese fishermen and expanding its military presence in the area.

Unveiling a new map, the deputy of maritime sovereignty at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Mr Arif Havas Oegroseno, noted that the side of its exclusive economic zone was the site of oil and gas activity.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he did not know details of the issue but added that the name South China Sea had broad international recognition and clear geographical limits.

"Certain countries' so-called renaming is totally meaningless," he said.</s>Indonesia will now refer to the northern areas of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the “North Natuna Sea” in an act of defiance against Beijing’s territorial ambitions in the region, the media reported.

At a press conference in Jakarta on Saturday, Deputy Minister for Marine Sovereignty Arif Havas Oegroseno unveiled a new map with the renamed territory, reports CNN.

“We need to continue updating the naming of the sea and report to the UN about the borders,” Oegroseno told Indonesia’s state-run news agency Antara.

“This [system] would allow the international community to know whose territory they pass through,” he added.

Part of the renamed area falls in China’s “nine-dash line” —— waters extending hundreds of miles to the south and east of China’s island province Hainan.

China claims the entirety of the sea, but Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia all have competing territorial claims to parts that are near their respective shores, reports CNN.

Indonesia is not the first country to rename part of the South China Sea.

In 2011, the Philippines renamed the waters as the “West Philippine Sea” and two years later took the territorial dispute before an international tribunal at The Hague.

In July 2016, the tribunal ruled in favour of the Philippines, concluding that China has no legal basis to claim historic rights to the bulk of the South China Sea.</s>Indonesia has renamed a part of South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea. — AFP picJAKARTA, July 15 ― Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea yesterday, the latest act of resistance by Southeast Asian nations to China's territorial ambitions in the maritime region.

Seen by analysts as an assertion of Indonesian sovereignty, part of the renamed sea is claimed by China under its contentious maritime boundary, known as the “nine-dash line”, that encompasses most of the resource-rich sea.

Several Southeast Asian states dispute China's territorial claims and are competing with China to exploit the South China Sea's abundant hydrocarbon and fishing resources. China has raised the ante by deploying military assets on artificial islands constructed on shoals and reefs in disputed parts of the sea.

Indonesia insists it's a non-claimant state in the South China Sea dispute but has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands, detaining Chinese fishermen and expanding its military presence in the area over the past 18 months.

Unveiling the new official map, the deputy of maritime sovereignty at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Arif Havas Oegroseno, noted the northern side of its exclusive economic zone was the site of oil and gas activity.

“We want to update the naming of the sea we gave a new name in line with the usual practice: the North Natuna Sea,” he told reporters.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he didn't know anything about the details of the issue, but said the name South China Sea had broad international recognition and clear geographic limits.

“Certain countries' so-called renaming is totally meaningless,” he told a daily news briefing. “We hope the relevant country can meet China halfway and properly maintain the present good situation in the South China Sea region, which has not come easily.”

I Made Andi Arsana, an expert on the Law of the Sea from Indonesia's Universitas Gadjah Mada, said the renaming carried no legal force but was a political and diplomatic statement.

“It will be seen as a big step by Indonesia to state its sovereignty,” he told Reuters. “It will send a clear message, both to the Indonesian people and diplomatically speaking.”

Euan Graham, director of the international security programme at the Lowy Institute, said Indonesia's action followed renewed resistance to Chinese territorial claims by other Southeast Asian states.

“This will be noticed in Beijing,” he said.

Last week, Vietnam extended an Indian oil concession off its coast while a joint venture led by state-owned PetroVietnam commenced drilling further south. China has a territorial claim in both areas.

Meanwhile, the director of the Philippines Energy Resource Development Bureau, Ismael Ocampo, said on Wednesday that the country could lift a suspension on oil and gas drilling on the Reed Bank by December. The underwater mountain, lying 85 nautical miles off the Philippines coast, is also claimed by China.

Exploration activity was suspended in late 2014 as the Philippines sought an international ruling on China's territorial claim. The Philippines won the case in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague one year ago.

China refused to recognise the decision. Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, who took office on June 30 last year, expressed reluctance about enforcing the decision at the time, as he sought deeper diplomatic and economic ties with China.

However, the Philippines lately has become more assertive about its sovereignty.

More than two dozen oil, gas and coal blocks, including additional areas in disputed waters, may be offered during the December bidding, Ocampo said on Wednesday. ― Reuters</s>South China Sea: Indonesia renames part of maritime economic zone in defiance of Beijing

Indonesia has renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea, the latest act of resistance to China's territorial ambitions in the maritime region.

Part of the renamed sea is claimed by China under its contentious maritime boundary, known as the "nine-dash line", that encompasses most of the resource-rich sea.

Several South-East Asian states dispute China's territorial claims and are competing with China to exploit the South China Sea's abundant hydrocarbon and fishing resources.

China has raised the ante by deploying military assets on artificial islands constructed on shoals and reefs in disputed parts of the sea.

Indonesia insists it is a non-claimant state in the South China Sea dispute but has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands, detaining Chinese fishermen and expanding its military presence in the area over the past 18 months.

Unveiling the new official map, the Deputy of Maritime Sovereignty at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, Arif Havas Oegroseno, noted the northern side of its exclusive economic zone was the site of oil and gas activity.

"We want to update the naming of the sea, we gave a new name in line with the usual practice: the North Natuna Sea," he told reporters.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he did not know anything about the details of the issue, but said the name South China Sea had broad international recognition and clear geographic limits.

"We hope the relevant country can meet China halfway and properly maintain the present good situation in the South China Sea region, which has not come easily."

I Made Andi Arsana, an expert on the Law of the Sea from Indonesia's Universitas Gadjah Mada, said the renaming carried no legal force but was a political and diplomatic statement.

"It will be seen as a big step by Indonesia to state its sovereignty," said.

"It will send a clear message, both to the Indonesian people and diplomatically speaking."

Euan Graham, director of the international security program at the Lowy Institute, said Indonesia's action followed renewed resistance to Chinese territorial claims by other South-East Asian states.

This article includes interactive enhancements which are not supported on this platform. For the full interactive experience in this article, you will need a modern web browser with JavaScript enabled. Find out more about browser support at ABC News Online. 

 Vietnam, China, Malaysia have eyes on the prize 

 

 

Rich in resources and traversed by a quarter of global shipping, the South China Sea is the stage for several territorial disputes that threaten to escalate tensions in the region.

At the heart of these disputes are a series of barren islands in two groups - the Spratly Islands, off the coast of the Philippines, and the Paracel Islands, off the coasts of Vietnam and China.

 

 

Both chains are essentially uninhabitable, but are claimed by no fewer than seven countries, eager to gain control of the vast oil and gas fields below them, as well as some of the region's best fishing grounds.

Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei have made claims to part of the Spratlys based on the internationally recognised Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which extends 200 hundred nautical miles from a country's coastline.

 

 

Based on the EEZ, the Philippines has the strongest claim on the Spratlys and their resources, with its EEZ covering much of the area. 

However the lure of resources, and prospect of exerting greater control over shipping in the region, means that greater powers are contesting the Philippines' claims.

 

 

China has made extensive sovereignty claims on both the Spratlys and the Paracels to the north, based largely on historic claims outlined in a map from the middle part of the 20th Century known as the 'Nine Dash Map'.

Taiwan also makes claims based on the same map, as it was created by the nationalist Kuomintang government, which fled to Taiwan after the communists seized power in China.

 

 

Vietnam also claims the Spratlys and the Paracels as sovereign territory, extending Vietnam's EEZ across much of the region and bringing it into direct conflict with China.

There have been deadly protests in Vietnam over China's decision to build an oil rig off the Paracels.

One Chinese worker in Vietnam was killed and a dozen injured in riots targeting Chinese and Taiwanese owned factories, prompting 3,000 Chinese nationals to flee the country.

 

 

EEZ can only be imposed based on boundaries of inhabitable land, and this has prompted all the countries making claims on the region to station personnel, and in some cases build military bases out of the water, to bolster their claim.

Building and protecting these structures has resulted in a series of stand-offs between countries in the region, each with the potential to escalate.

China has been leading the charge with these installations, and has deployed vessels to the region to protect their interests. 

Chinese coast guard vessels have used a water cannon on Vietnamese vessels, as well as blockading an island where the Philippines has deployed military personnel. 

 Rich in resources and traversed by a quarter of global shipping, the South China Sea is the stage for several territorial disputes that threaten to escalate tensions in the region.At the heart of these disputes are a series of barren islands in two groups - the Spratly Islands, off the coast of the Philippines, and the Paracel Islands, off the coasts of Vietnam and China.Both chains are essentially uninhabitable, but are claimed by no fewer than seven countries, eager to gain control of the vast oil and gas fields below them, as well as some of the region's best fishing grounds.Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei have made claims to part of the Spratlys based on the internationally recognised Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which extends 200 hundred nautical miles from a country's coastline.Based on the EEZ, the Philippines has the strongest claim on the Spratlys and their resources, with its EEZ covering much of the area.However the lure of resources, and prospect of exerting greater control over shipping in the region, means that greater powers are contesting the Philippines' claims.China has made extensive sovereignty claims on both the Spratlys and the Paracels to the north, based largely on historic claims outlined in a map from the middle part of the 20th Century known as the 'Nine Dash Map'.Taiwan also makes claims based on the same map, as it was created by the nationalist Kuomintang government, which fled to Taiwan after the communists seized power in China.Vietnam also claims the Spratlys and the Paracels as sovereign territory, extending Vietnam's EEZ across much of the region and bringing it into direct conflict with China.There have been deadly protests in Vietnam over China's decision to build an oil rig off the Paracels.One Chinese worker in Vietnam was killed and a dozen injured in riots targeting Chinese and Taiwanese owned factories, prompting 3,000 Chinese nationals to flee the country.EEZ can only be imposed based on boundaries of inhabitable land, and this has prompted all the countries making claims on the region to station personnel, and in some cases build military bases out of the water, to bolster their claim.Building and protecting these structures has resulted in a series of stand-offs between countries in the region, each with the potential to escalate.China has been leading the charge with these installations, and has deployed vessels to the region to protect their interests.Chinese coast guard vessels have used a water cannon on Vietnamese vessels, as well as blockading an island where the Philippines has deployed military personnel.</s>Indonesia has renamed part of the South China Sea as it will now refer to the northern areas of its exclusive economic zone in the sea as the “North Natuna Sea.” Comprising of hundreds of small islands, reefs and shoals, the South China Sea is an important shipping route and believed to be rich in natural resources, such as oil and gas. China claims the entirety of the sea, but Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia all have competing territorial claims. At a recent press conference in Jakarta, Deputy Minister for Marine Sovereignty Arif Havas Oegroseno unveiled a new map with the renamed territory.

“We need to continue updating the naming of the sea and report to the United Nations about the borders. This (system) would allow the international community to know whose territory they pass through,” Oegroseno told Indonesia’s state-run news agency Antara. Part of the renamed area falls in China’s “nine-dash line”.

Reacting on the development, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he wasn’t aware of the details of Indonesia’s decision, but reiterated his country’s territorial claims to the South China Sea.

“The so-called change of name makes no sense at all and is not conducive to the effort of the international standardization of the name of places,” Shuang said at a daily press briefing.

“We hope relevant country can work with China for the shared goal and jointly uphold the current hard-won sound situation in the South China Sea,” he said. Indonesia is not the first country to rename part of the South China Sea.

In 2011, the Philippines renamed the waters as the “West Philippine Sea”.

 In recent years, China has invested heavily in building and militarising artificial islands in the South China Sea. Other nations have also deployed military assets to assert their territorial claims.</s>Relations between Jakarta and Beijing, which are not always smooth sailing, took a new twist last Friday when Indonesia unrolled a map depicting an expansion to its maritime territory with the naming of the waters off its northern perimeter North Natuna Sea.

Although it lies in Indonesia's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the waters north of the Natuna Islands bordering the South China Sea have no name and are often designated, albeit loosely, as part of the latter.

The move comes as Jakarta continues to woo investors, particularly from China and Japan, to participate in its infrastructure works.

President Joko Widodo has, since his term started in October 2014, looked to infrastructure development to boost South-east Asia's largest economy.

Chinese and Japanese investors have been invited into the energy and transport sectors. The electricity penetration rate is low in Indonesia and logistic costs are among the highest in South-east Asia due to traffic snarls caused by poor access roads. There is also a dearth of good sea ports in Indonesia.

China Railway Corp is building the US$5 billion (S$6.9 billion) Jakarta-Bandung high speed train, while China Power Investment Corp and Anhui Conch Cement are major players in other infrastructure projects.

Also, Jakarta and Beijing in the past few years have been managing tensions over maritime issues off Natuna Islands. Mr Joko has visited the Natunas several times in recent years to underline the country's seriousness in protecting its fishing grounds from poaching.

In March last year, Jakarta accused a Chinese coast guard vessel of trying to forcibly prevent the detention of a Chinese fishing boat seized by the Indonesian authorities near the Natunas. Jakarta said the boat was fishing illegally in Indonesian waters. Beijing said the incident took place in China's "traditional fishing grounds". There have been other run-ins.

The new maritime map could change that equation.

"For now, the ball is in China's court. Indonesia has made its position clear on the new map, based on the recently completed delimitation agreements with Singapore and the Philippines as well as, significantly, the July 2016 tribunal ruling," Mr Evan Laksmana, a researcher at Indonesia's Centre for Strategic and International Studies, told The Straits Times.

In July last year, an arbitral tribunal in The Hague handed Manila a sweeping victory in a case it filed challenging Beijing's expansive claims to the South China Sea. The tribunal confirmed the Philippines' jurisdiction over its EEZ.

China boycotted the proceedings and has refused to acknowledge the Philippines' jurisdiction.

Beijing continues to hold on to its U-shaped "nine-dash line" claims that extend from its Hainan island, south to Borneo to pass by north of the Natunas, and north to Taiwan.

University of Indonesia international law expert Hikmahanto Juwana said Jakarta's updated map serves to assert its position that it does not recognise China's nine- dash line claim, which was also not recognised by the Hague's tribunal.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang, when asked about the naming of North Natuna Sea on Friday, said: "The so-called change of name makes no sense at all and is not conductive to the effort of the international standardisation of the name of places."

Indonesia's Deputy Coordinating Minister of Maritime Affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno on Friday said Jakarta has been updating its maps for decades.</s>So, Indonesia will henceforth refer to the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea.

Talk of well, a sea-change in attitudes in Jakarta on the dispute that has roiled the region for the past five years!

In January last year, at a closed door session in a South-east Asian nation organised by a European think-tank, the South China Sea situation figured prominently in some panels. A top Indonesian diplomat insisted that his country was not a party to the dispute, and that China had assured Jakarta it had no overlapping claims with it.

When another delegate intervened to say that senior Chinese military officials state their belief that 50,000 sq km of Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone belongs to China it was met with incredulity.

A few months later, Indonesia willy-nilly had to acknowledge it had a problem when the Chinese coast guard intervened to free a poaching vessel within Indonesia’s territorial waters while it was being towed towards shore. Since the ship had been seized in Indonesia’s EEZ, there was little question what the Chinese action meant.

It is clear that archipelagic Indonesia has been doing some serious reflection about the South China Sea situation and its implications for its own strategic calculations.

The renaming is really a symbolic gesture.

But it is an important one since it comes from the largest Asean nation and its biggest economy.

For some months now, Indonesia also has been beefing up its military presence in the area.

What’s more, the Indonesian gesture of assertiveness comes in the wake of Vietnam extending to India a concession to drill in waters contested by China.

Ever since Indonesian President Bambang Yudhoyono retired from office, the region has felt a leadership gap, missing the energy that his foreign minister Marty Natalegawa brought to his office.

His successor, President Joko Widodo, has been a reticent character. Lately, Mr Joko has been more assertive in his own country.

Now the region would surely be interested to know if the popular Indonesian president has a vision for South-east Asia as well.

If he follows through on his government’s announcement on Friday, it is one more signal to China that this is one issue that cannot be easily put away.

Meanwhile, as one analyst pointed out on Friday (July 14) night, there are now four names for these waters. The Chinese call it the South Sea, Vietnamese the East Sea, for Manila it is the West Philippines Sea and for Indonesia, North Natuna Sea. Enough to make anyone’s head swim.

It is no secret that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Indian counterpart, Mr Narendra Modi, share a deep bond of friendship.

Strong leaders both and with a vision to reshape the destiny of their nations, they have sought to set in place policies that could potentially have lasting consequences for their people.

After the landslide victory of his party in Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state by population, Mr Modi seemed set to rule India for at least a second term after the current one expires in 2019.

Likewise, Mr Abe seemed set to rule comfortably until at least 2021 since he looked set to win a third term as party leader, and hence, PM, when his current term ends in 2018.

A few months is a long time in politics, however.

Suddenly, Mr Abe’s gilt-edged franchise with his people, which helped him ram through some key constitutional amendments, has ebbed significantly. A survey by Jiji news agency that was released on Friday showed support for his government had fallen 15.2 points from a month earlier to 29.9 per cent.

The biggest reason cited was a lack of trust in the prime minister, partly because of a sense he was taking them for granted and partly because of a swirling scandal over suspicion that he had helped a friend’s business.

Mr Modi, on the other hand, is at the other end of the spectrum in his ratings, according to a Forbes report that cited an OECD study. Apparently, he enjoys the highest trust of his people among all world leaders, with a whopping 73 per cent supporting him, significantly ahead of the Canadian government headed by Mr Justin Trudeau, which had an endorsement level of 62 per cent.

What could explain this divergence? Mr Modi, after all, has had his policy mis-steps, including the most spectacular of all, a so-called "demonetisation" of high value currency notes in an effort to tamp down on illegal cash hoards.

The difference is perhaps this: Mr Modi, who took office, after a decade of corruption scandals under Mr Manmohan Singh’s watch, has run what seems a blemishless government on that score. While the Indian public knows he has erred, they clearly do not doubt his sincerity.</s>In an act of defiance against Beijing's territorial ambitions in the region, Indonesia will now call the northern areas of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, the 'North Natuna Sea.'

At a press conference in Jakarta, Indonesia's Deputy Minister for Marine Sovereignty Arif Havas Oegroseno unveiled a new map with the re-named territory.

"We need to continue updating the naming of the sea and report to the United Nations about the borders," Oegroseno told Indonesia's state-run news agency Antara.

"This (system) would allow the international community to know whose territory they pass through," he added.
Indonesia renames part of the South China Sea as "North Natuna Sea," angering China.