Indonesia Hosts Rivals China, America, and Both Koreas in Humanitarian Naval Exercise

Majorets from the Indonesian Naval Academy perform during the parade of the 2023 Multilate
INDRA ABRIYANTO/AFP via Getty Images
John Hayward

Indonesia on Monday hosted the first day of the unusual “Komodo” joint naval exercise, in which ships from the rival American, Chinese, and Russian navies practice their responses to humanitarian disasters together.

The Komodo Multilateral Naval Exercise (KOMODO-MNEK) has been hosted every two years by Indonesia in various Indo-Pacific locations since 2014, although it skipped the pandemic year of 2020. The exercise has always boasted dozens of participating navies. This year the total reached 49, including such odd couples as North and South Korea, and India and Pakistan.

The Philippine Navy claimed credit for being first to arrive at the Komodo 2023 training area in Makassar, Indonesia, on Sunday. The Philippines sent a single ship, the BRP Andres Bonifacio, with 193 personnel aboard, departing from Subic Naval Operating Base on May 29.

Fifteen more ships were anchored off Indonesia’s Sulawesi Island by Monday morning, including Chinese and Russian vessels. Chinese state media said its two ships, the destroyer Zhanjiang and frigate Xuchang, were both armed with guided missiles.

“The exercise emphasizes military operations other than war (MOOTW) with navies responding to natural disasters, humanitarian assistance, and maritime threats,” said Philippine Navy public affairs officer Lt. Jonathan Carretas.

Carretas said the theme of this year’s event is “Partnership to Recover and to Rise Stronger,” a reference to the world emerging from the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic.

Komodo begins with a “harbor phase” that includes training sessions, civil engineering projects, and meetings, then moves to a “sea phase” that will conclude on Thursday. The sea phase includes simulated sea rescues and other emergency procedures, such as responding to natural disasters.

The Indonesian Navy said the goal was to provide a “non-war” exercise that will improve relationships between all of the naval forces active in the Indo-Pacific region.

“This exercise aims to enhance diplomatic capabilities, international cooperation, strengthen relationships and build cooperation with friendly nations,” Indonesia Navy Chief of Staff Mohammed Ali said at the opening ceremony on Monday.

“The participation of representatives from friendly navies demonstrates the importance of this activity in the international agenda that can contribute positively to achieving regional security, stability and peace,” he said.

Majorets from the Indonesian Naval Academy perform during the parade of the 2023 Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo (MNEK) in Makassar on June 6, 2023. (INDRA ABRIYANTO/AFP via Getty Images)

Ali hoped the Komodo exercise would help the participants “exchange knowledge and experience” to “facilitate coordination in detailing with various crisis situations in an integrated manner.”

“This activity is intended to strengthen naval diplomacy and I think this must continue to be nurtured,” Indonesian Armed Forces Commander Adm. Yudo Margono added, noting that Indonesia’s territorial waters border ten other nations, so maritime cooperation is a high national priority.

The South China Morning Post (SCMP) gave Indonesia credit for managing regional tensions, noting that it “deftly handled last year’s G20 meeting in Bali in the shadow of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” and is now hosting China and the U.S. for joint exercises only a few days after the two nations clashed at the Shangri-La regional defense forum in Singapore, and had a tense encounter in the Strait of Taiwan.

A spokesman for the U.S. Navy complimented Indonesia’s “ability to select participants in its host-nation capacity,” and said the Komodo exercise fit into America’s objective of keeping the Indo-Pacific region “open and accessible” under international law.

The SCMP noted that while Indonesia puts a great deal of effort into walking a tightrope of impartiality between the feuding great powers, there are signs Jakarta is growing exasperated with China’s aggressive South China Sea territorial claims, such as Indonesia putting its traditional bilateral exercises with China on hold ever since the Komodo program began in 2014.

Komodo 2023 will be a final opportunity for Indonesian President Joko Widodo to practice some maritime diplomacy and set the stage for his successor, as he is term-limited against running again in 2024.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.