JAKARTA -- Indonesia's navy has disputed reports that four Vietnamese fishermen were wounded in a weekend incident that was the second clash between the two countries in the South China Sea in two months. Navy spokesman Gig Jonias Mozes Sipasulta said a warship fired a warning shot when two Vietnamese boats that were intercepted four nautical miles inside Indonesian territory on Sunday sailed toward its bow. In a statement released Monday evening, Mr Sipasulta said reports of Vietnamese being shot were untrue. He said the two fishing vessels immediately left Indonesian waters after the KRI Wiratno-379 fired its warning shot. Experts said that move was aimed at protecting its exclusive economic zone north of the Natuna island chain, which overlaps with China's nine-dash line that roughly demarcates its claim to the South China Sea.

Source: Bangkok Post July 25, 2017 05:15 UTC