Indonesia and the United States have broken ground on a new $3.5 million maritime training center in the strategic area of Batam, in the Riau Islands.
According to local media sources, the US ambassador to Indonesia, Sung Kim attended the ceremony virtually and said the maritime centre would be part of ongoing efforts between the two countries to bolster security in the region.
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“As a friend and partner to Indonesia, the United States remains committed to supporting Indonesia’s important role in maintaining regional peace and security by fighting domestic and trans-national crimes,” he said, according to a statement from Bakamla, Indonesia’s maritime security agency.
As informed, the new center will be well located. Batam is the main island in the Riau Islands, which lie in close proximity to Singapore and the southeastern mouth of the Malacca Straits, a crucial chokepoint for global maritime trade.
Concluding, the new collaboration with the U.S. on the Batam training center is just the latest sign of Indonesia’s push to bolster the capacity of its aging navy, which has struggled to patrol the archipelago’s full sprawling expanse of territorial waters and exclusive economic zone.
