FIR Negotiation Intensifies

KOMPAS/ANITA YOSSIHARA

President Joko Widodo and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong conduct an inspection of the troops at a ceremony to welcome a state guest at the Singapore Palace on Tuesday (8/10/2019). President Jokowi visited Singapore to discuss strengthening the cooperation between the two countries.

SINGAPORE, KOMPAS – After decades, negotiations on the flight information region (FIR) management over Riau Islands is finally inching closer to a resolution. Apart from agreeing on a framework, the Indonesian and Singaporean governments are also intensifying FIR negotiations.

After meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Presidential Palace on Tuesday (8/10/2019), President Joko Widodo said his government welcomed the agreement on the Riau Island FIR negotiation framework. “Indonesia welcomes the framework for FIR rearrangement negotiation agreed upon by both countries,” he said in a joint press conference with PM Lee.

Riau Island FIR management is among the topics of this year’s annual meeting between President Jokowi and PM Lee at the palace. In the meeting, President Jokowi reiterated Indonesia’s wish to manage its own airspace.

The Singaporean government says that it understands Indonesia’s wish for airspace management. “Indonesia appreciates Singapore’s position of understanding Indonesia’s wish to monitor its own air space,” President Jokowi said.

KOMPAS/ANITA YOSSIHARA

President Joko Widodo (left) and Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong deliver a joint press statement after a meeting at the Singapore Palace on Tuesday (8/10/2019). The two government leaders reaffirmed their commitment to continue strengthening the mutually beneficial relations between the two countries.

President Jokowi continued that he hoped the framework would facilitate technical teams’ negotiation. Furthermore, he said he hoped negotiations would intensify and an agreement of FIR arrangement be reached soon.

In line with President Jokowi’s statement, PM Lee said he appreciated the airspace management negotiation framework agreed upon by Indonesia and Singapore. However, he reaffirmed his hope that the negotiation be based on principles of mutual respect and appreciation.

As reported by The Straits Times, PM Lee said that the framework recognized that the core interests and rights of both countries were to be recognized and respected. PM Lee said that Singapore wished for both countries to work together “in open and constructive ways”.

On the FIR issue, Indonesia wishes for Singapore to respect “Indonesia’s sovereignty over its territories, including its territorial waters, archipelagic waters and airspace”. On the other hand, Singapore wishes that Indonesia “fully respect and recognize Singapore’s right to conduct military trainings in the South China Sea in line with United Nations’ 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and to understand Singapore’s interest on the future of Changi Airport.

KOMPAS/PRADIPTA PANDU MUSTIKA

Retno L.P. Marsudi

Separately, Foreign Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi said the airspace management negotiation framework was signed on 12 September. Negotiations between technical teams of the Indonesian and Singaporean governments began on Monday (7/10).

“This is progress. The important thing is that there is progress, after its absence since the Aviation Law was issued in 2009,” Retno said.