Indonesia's Navy Fired Warning Shots At Vietnamese Boats

JAKARTA, July 25 (Antara) - Indonesia's Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Ade Supandi reiterated that the navy had fired warning shots at Vietnamese fishing boats intercepted in the North Natuna Sea last week. "They were warning shots and not targeted at the boats, and nobody was wounded," Supandi noted at the Merdeka Palace, here on Tuesday, while responding to reports saying that Vietnamese fishermen were wounded in the incident. Supandi said, several Vietnamese vessels were involved in the clash with Indonesia's patrol ship in the waters. He noted that almost every day, the authority has found foreign ships poaching in the country's waters. "We will work on coordination. This is a violation of the law on fisheries, and the Maritime and Fisheries Ministry has the authority to monitor illegal fishing," Supandi noted. Reuters had earlier reported that four Vietnamese fishermen were wounded in an incident, allegedly due to warning shots fired from Indonesia's Navy in the North Natuna Sea last week. According to the search and rescue agency of Binh Dinh Province, Vietnam, the fishing boats were found 132 nautical miles southeast of Con Dao Island, which is part of the North Natuna Sea.