Abstract
The Ambalat block dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia has been the most controversial issue between the two countries since konfrontasi came to an end in 1966. The dispute arose from the two country’s overlapping claims to sovereign rights in the oil rich Ambalat region and intensified in the first decade of the twenty-first century when a naval stand-off between the two sides threatened to escalate the dispute into a military conflict. However, numerous measures, practices and approaches were used to manage, although not resolve, the dispute peacefully. The chapter provides a comprehensive background to the origins and development of the dispute, the factors driving its escalation and subsequent de-escalation, and discusses the various short, medium and long-term management conflict mechanisms employed by the two sides that have mitigated their incompatibilities and successfully circumvented conflict.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Indonesia was one of a number of designated archipelagic states recognized by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that took place in Montego Bay, Jamaica on December 10, 1982.
- 2.
PERTAMINA: Perusahaan Pertambangan Minyak dan Gas Bumi Negara (The State Oil and Natural Gas Mining Company).
- 3.
Such a claim does not stand up to historical scrutiny as there is no evidence of an archipelagic conquest by Gaja Mada, while Majapahit had declined well before Western colonialism. Tangsubkul (1982) points out other problems relating to this argument.
- 4.
See Martin (2012) for a discussion on the term “Indon”.
- 5.
In relation to UNCLOS 1982, sovereignty only comes into force in territorial seas which extend no more than 12 nautical miles from the baseline of a coastal state (Article 2). Thus while the Ambalat block may come under Indonesia’s jurisdiction as part of its EEZ this relates to sovereign rights and not sovereignty. See Arsana (2010).
- 6.
- 7.
These discussions were not confined to the Ambalat issue but covered other disputed border areas.
- 8.
This is no withstanding recent Malaysian incursions in the area (see Parlina 2015)
- 9.
It is estimated that 5000 ships fish illegally every day in Indonesia which costs the country over $20 billion per year (Parameswaran 2015).
- 10.
An example is the recent Malaysian Proton Holdings Berhard’s collaboration with Indonesian firm PT Adiperkasa Citra Lestari on the development of a “national car” (see Yulisman 2015). Malaysian companies also stand to gain from Jokowi’s maritime policy with one group recently announcing plans to invest $5.3 billion in developing maritime infrastructure in West Java (see Kurniawan and Syukra 2015).
References
Ali, I., & Othman, Z. (2012). Penguatkuasaan dan persoalan persempadan maritim negeri Sabah. Kota Kinabalu: Penerbit Universiti Malaysia Sabah.
Amer, R. (2001–2002). The Association of South-East Asian nations and the management of territorial disputes. Boundary and Security Bulletin, 9(4), 81–96.
Antara News. (2007a, October). Parlemen Malaysia tuduh media massa Indonesia tanamkan kebencian. http://www.antaranews.com/print/81284/parlemen-malaysia-tuduh-media-massa-indonesia-tanamkan-kebencian. Accessed July 01, 2015.
Antara News. (2007b, August 03). Pers Malaysia kagum Presiden RI manfaatkan Dewan Pers. http://www.antaranews.com/berita/72676/pers-malaysia-kagum-presiden-ri-manfaatkan-dewan-pers. Accessed July 01, 2015.
Antara News. (2008, January 08). Didirikan Ikatan Setiakawan Wartawan Malaysia-Indonesia. http://www.antaranews.com/berita/89407/didirikan-ikatan-setiakawan-wartawan-malaysia-indonesia. Accessed July 01, 2015.
Anwar, D. F. (1994). Indonesia in ASEAN: Foreign policy and regionalism. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
Arifin, S. (2012). Trans border cooperation between Indonesia-Malaysia and its implication to the border development. International Journal of Business, Economics and Law, 1(1), 85–90.
Arsana, I. M. A. (2010). Penyelesaian sengketa Ambalat dengan delimitasi maritim: Kajian geospasial dan yuridis. Jurnal Ilmiah Fakultas Ilmu Sosial dan Ilmu Politik, 1(1), 46–58.
Badawi, A. A. (2006). Islam Hadhari: A model approach for development and progress. Selangor: MPH Group Publishing.
Baikoeni, E. Y. (2014). Patriot negara kepulauan: 80 tahun Prof. Dr. Hasjim Djalal gelar Tuanku Pujangga Diraja. Jakarta: Pandu Aksara Publishing.
Blouin News. (2015, February 06). Malaysia and Indonesia expand economic cooperation. http://blogs.blouinnews.com/blouinbeatbusiness/2015/02/06/malaysia-and-indonesia-expand-economic-cooperation. Accessed June 05, 2015.
Butcher, J. G. (2013). The International Court of Justice and the territorial dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia in the Sulawesi Sea. Contemporary Southeast Asia, 35(2), 235–257.
Diplomacy Indonesia 2011. (2011). http://www.kemlu.go.id/Books/DIPLOMASI%202011.pdf. Accessed May 01, 2015.
Energy-Pedia News. (2009, April 22). Indonesia: ENI Bukat block discovery now expected to begin production next year. http://www.energy-pedia.com/news/indonesia/eni-bukat-block-discovery-now-expected-to-begin-production-next-year. Accessed June 09, 2015.
Ganesan, N., & Amer, R. (Eds.). (2010). International relations in Southeast Asia: Between bilateralism and multilateralism. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asia Studies.
Gatsiounis, I. (2006). Islam Hadhari in Malaysia. In H. H. H. Fradkin, & E. Brown (Eds.), Current trends in Islamist ideology (Vol. 3, pp. 78–88). Washington D.C.: Center on Islam, Democracy, and the Future of the Muslim World, Hudson Institute.
Guerin, B. (2005, March 09). Sulawesi Sea row dredges up defences. Asia Times Online. http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/GC09Ae02.html. Accessed May 06, 2015.
Indonesia Defence. (2010, December 29). TNI gelar sidang ke-8 HLC Malindo. http://indonesiandefense.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/tni-gelar-sidang-ke-8-hlc-malindo.html. Accessed May 05, 2015.
Indorf, H. H. (1984). Impediments to regionalism in Southeast Asia: Bilateral constraints among ASEAN member states. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
International Court of Justice. (2003). Press release 2002/39, Sovereignty over Pulau Ligitan and Pulau Sipadan (Indonesia/Malaysia). http://www.icj-cij.org/presscom/index.php?pr=343&pt=1&p1=6&p2=1. Accessed May 04, 2015.
Jakarta Post. (2015, May 19). RI to sink boats from China, Thailand, Malaysia on Wednesday. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/05/19/ri-sink-boats-china-thailand-malaysia-wednesday.html. Accessed June 04, 2015.
Karim, A., Campbell, J., & Srinivas, S. et al. (2013). Report on the Malaysia-Indonesia dialogue 2009. Statement: Sensitivities between Malaysia and Indonesia. In A. Karim, J. Campbell & S. Srinivas (Eds.), Repositioning Malaysian foreign policy. Pulau Pinang: Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia, Centre for Policy Research & International Studies.
Kompas. (2010a, September 1). Hari ini presiden pidato di Mabes TNI. http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2010/09/01/10165863/Hari.Ini.Presiden.Pidato.di.Mabes.TNI. Accessed May 08, 2015.
Kompas. (2010b, September 2). Malaysia, one of five biggest investors in Indonesia. http://lipsus.kompas.com/smartliving/read/2010/09/02/13533759/Malaysia.One.of.Five.Biggest.Investors.in.Indonesia. Accessed June 16, 2015.
Koran Jakarta. (2009). Malaysia minta maaf soal Ambalat. http://issuu.com/koran_jakarta/docs/edisi_361__kamis_-_11_juni_2009. Accessed June 06, 2015.
Kurniawan, H., & Syukra, R. (2015, June 04). Malaysia to get a piece of Jokowi’s maritime axis. Jakarta Globe. http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/malaysia-get-piece-jokos-maritime-axis. Accessed June 06, 2015.
Lensa Indonesia. (2012). Hayono Isman: Malaysia kurang ajar, perang! http://www.lensaindonesia.com/2012/05/08/hayono-isman-malaysia-kurang-ajar-perang.html. Accessed June 09, 2015.
Liputan6. (2005). Soal Ambalat, Presiden SBY mengontak PM Malaysia. http://news.liputan6.com/read/97047/soal-ambalat-presiden-sby-mengontak-pm-malaysia. Accessed June 15, 2015.
Mak, J. N. (2009). Sovereignty in ASEAN and the problem of maritime cooperation in the South China Sea. In S. Bateman & R. Emmers (Eds.), Security and international politics in the South China Sea: Towards a cooperative management regime (pp. 110–127). London: Routledge.
Martadha Mohamed, A., & Suyatno. (2013). Transformasi isu konflik dan hubungan Indonesia-Malaysia. http://pusatstudimalindo.org/transformasi-isu-konflik-dan-hubungan-indonesia-malaysia. Accessed May 11, 2015.
Martin, N. (2012, March 07). Why ‘Indon’ is not preferable. Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/03/07/why-indon-not-preferable.html. Accessed July 09, 2015.
Mattangkilang, T. (2013, June 17). Ambalat Border dispute ignored for joint Indonesia/Malaysia exploration efforts. Jakarta Globe. http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/border-dispute-ignored-for-joint-exploration-efforts-2. Accessed June 06, 2015.
Panda, A. (2015, February 10). Here’s how Malaysia and Indonesia plan to resolve their territorial disputes. The Diplomat. http://thediplomat.com/2015/02/heres-how-malaysia-and-indonesia-plan-to-resolve-their-territorial-disputes. Accessed June 05, 2015.
Parameswaran, P. (2015, January 13). Explaining Indonesia’s ‘sink the vessels’ policy under Jokowi. The Diplomat. http://thediplomat.com/2015/01/explaining-indonesias-sink-the-vessels-policy-under-jokowi. Accessed June 05, 2015.
Parlina, I. (2015, June 16). RI to query Malaysian manuevers near Ambalat. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/06/16/ri-query-malaysian-manuevers-near-ambalat.html. Accessed June 20, 2015.
Portal Rasmi Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia. (2014, November 25). Latma Malindo Jaya 23AB/2014 buktikan kredibiliti kerjasama Malaysia-Indonesia. http://www.navy.mil.my/index.php/media-massa/berita/berita-utama/item/1570-latma-malindo-jaya-23ab-2014-buktikan-kredibiliti-kerjasama-malaysia-indonesia. Accessed June 04, 2015.
Prakoso, J. I. (2007). Sengketa Ambalat di mata media. https://junarto.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/sengketa-ambalat-di-mata-media. Accessed Many 05, 2015.
Reprocess. (2010, July 27). TOR kerjasama sosek Malindo perlu disempurnakan. http://www.setdaprovkaltim.info/perbatasan/tor-kerjasama-sosek-malindo-perlu-disempurnakan. Accessed May 10, 2015.
Roughneen, S. (2009). Naval standoff between Indonesia, Malaysia. World Politics Review. http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/3910/naval-standoff-between-indonesia-malaysia. Accessed May 06, 2015.
Salleh, A. (2007). Dispute resolution through third party mediation: Malaysia and Indonesia. Intellectual Discourse, 15(2), 147–175.
Saraswati, M. S. (2005, June 11). RI, Malaysia to avoid repeat of gunboat incident. Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2005/04/12/ri-malaysia-avoid-repeat-gunboat-incident.html. Accessed May 06, 2015.
Sinarpaginews. (2012, November 01). Panglima TNI buka Sidang ke-10 HLC Malindo. http://www.sinarpaginews.com/fullpost/nasional/1351726295/panglima-tni-buka-sidang-ke10-hlc-malindo.html. Accessed June 03, 2015.
Suara Merdeka. (2007). Panglima Tentara Malaysia minta Ambalat digarap bersama. http://www.suaramerdeka.com/cybernews/harian/0705/11/int3.htm. Accessed June 06, 2015.
Tangsubkul, P. (1982). ASEAN and the law of the Sea. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
Tejo, A. (2009, May 29). Navy was set to fire on warship. Jakarta Globe. http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/archive/navy-was-set-to-fire-on-warship. Accessed May 05, 2015.
Tempo. (2014, December 01). Minister Susi defends Jokowi over Malaysian media mockery. http://en.tempo.co/read/news/2014/12/01/055625738/Minister-Susi-Defends-Jokowi-over-Malaysian-Media-Mockery. Accessed June 05, 2015.
Valencia, M. J., & Khalid, N. (2009, January 28). The Sulawesi Sea situation: Stage for tension or storm in a teacup? The Asia-Pacific Journal. http://japanfocus.org/-Mark_J_-Valencia/3184/article.html. Accessed May 05, 2015.
Weiss, M. L. (2010). Malaysia-Indonesia bilateral relations: Sibling rivals in a fraught family. In N. Ganesan, & R. Amer (Eds.), International relations in Southeast Asia: Between bilateralism and multilateralism (pp. 171–198). Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
Yulisman, L. (2015, February 10). Proton, Adiperkasa firm on ‘national car’. Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/02/10/proton-adiperkasa-firm-national-car.html. Accessed June 05, 2015.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Druce, S.C., Baikoeni, E.Y. (2016). Circumventing Conflict: The Indonesia–Malaysia Ambalat Block Dispute. In: Oishi, M. (eds) Contemporary Conflicts in Southeast Asia. Asia in Transition, vol 3. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0042-3_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0042-3_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-10-0040-9
Online ISBN: 978-981-10-0042-3
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)