Indonesia mulling move to send troops to besieged Philippines city

MANADO (North Sulawesi): Indonesia is not dismissing the possibility of sending its troops to the besieged city of Marawi in the Philippines, a top security official has said, adding that the archipelago will continue to strengthen security cooperation with neighbouring countries.

In a statement delivered after a high-level meeting in Manado, North Sulawesi, with the representatives of six countries on Saturday, Coor-dinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto said participants had agreed it would be impossible for a country to fight alone against the rising threat of terrorism.

Considering recent developments in the southern Philippines, which has been under siege by Islamic militants, and the fact that the Islamic State (IS) faction operating in Marawi was part of an international organisation, Wiranto said the option remains open for the Indonesian Military to be deployed in the beleaguered city.

“It is not impossible if someday we decide to fight them (IS) together in Marawi,” he told reporters in a joint statement with Australian Attorney General George Brandis.

Wiranto went on to say that following a setback in the Middle East, the militants tried to establish new bases in Marawi and Poso, Central Sulawesi, but given the conditions, decided on the Philippines.

In the forum, which was cohosted by Indonesia and Australia, other delegates from New Zealand, the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia agreed that the rise of IS in Marawi had sparked alarm in the Pacific region, and the countries would need to work together to keep the extremist group at bay.

The six nations agreed to boost information sharing as well as cooperation between their respective law enforcement bodies and companies that provide social networking services. They also emphasised the importance of enhancing women’s roles in preventing radicalisation and improving the management of detention centres.

Meanwhile, Brandis called the decision to share intelligence to overcome terrorism in the region a “tangible result” in the fight against extremism and said he appreciated Wiranto for initiating such a forum.

He added that it was important to conduct a similar meeting in 2018 and build a platform for the six participating countries to continue to work together in order “to stay ahead of terrorism”.

“This is a significant meeting and it will be one-off, but it will be the first in a series of meetings,” Brandis said.

The meeting came a week after the Institute of Policy Analysis and Conflict released a report called “Marawi, The East Wilayah and Indonesia”, which suggested the possibility of new pro-IS cells emerging in the region if South-East Asian countries failed to develop a more systematic approach on each other’s extremist networks. — The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network