Indonesia says Chinese vessel twice driven out of its waters

JAKARTA A Chinese Coast Guard vessel was driven out of Indonesia's waters for a second time this week after it initially disrupted a survey by state energy firm Pertamina in the South China Sea, Indonesia's maritime security agency said on Oct 24.

While Chinese Coast Guard vessels have been spotted numerous times in Indonesia's exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the most recent incidents came just days after Mr Prabowo Subianto took over Indonesia's presidency.

China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea via a "nine-dash line" on its maps that cuts into the EEZs of Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague in 2016 said China's claim has no basis under international law, a ruling Beijing does not recognise.

The incidents took place off Indonesia's Natuna islands, roughly 1,500km from China's Hainan island. The exact locations were not immediately clear.