Airspace Spat Shows Indonesia's Newfound Foreign Policy Muscle
- Indonesia needs to preserve its borders, vice president says
- Country doesn't expect conflict in South China Sea, Kalla says
(GERMANY OUT) Islands near Sorong, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia
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Indonesia is pushing to reclaim airspace within five years in a sensitive military area that’s currently controlled by Singapore, as President Joko Widodo takes a more assertive approach to foreign policy.
The airspace over the Riau and Natuna islands near Singapore has been administered by the city-state since 1946 as a postwar holdover and is a corridor for flights in and out of Changi Airport, one of Asia’s busiest for international flights. Singapore says the arrangement provides effective air traffic control services, and is not about sovereignty.