Invoking the "freedom of navigation" principle, Australia has accepted Indonesia's request to conduct joint naval patrols in the disputed South China Sea.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop confirmed on Tuesday that Canberra has accepted Indonesia's request for joint patrols during a bilateral meeting last week in Jakarta.

Like Us on Facebook

Bishop said Jakarta's request was "consistent with our policies of exercising our right of freedom of navigation."

International law

In an earlier interview with the media, Bishop said the joint patrols would be an exercise of the rights to freedom of navigation in the strategic waterway.

"That's in accordance with international law and our support for peace and stability in the region," Bishop told ABC radio.

China has earlier blasted Australia for conducting surveillance flights over disputed territories in the South China Sea and for joining US patrols in the region.

Third party

Beijing, which is laying claim to more than 90 percent of the South China Sea, has warned Australia to "speak and act cautiously" on the South China Sea dispute because it has no business in the region and is a third party to the dispute.

Bishop said Australia would participate in maritime exercises in the region with Indonesian Navy and would notify other countries if there would be planned exercises in the coming months.

"This is a regular part of what our navy does," she said. "This is part of our engagement in the region and this is in accordance with Australia's right of freedom of navigation including in the South China Sea."

On July 12, an arbitration court verdict ruled that China has no legal basis to make territorial claims in the contested sea and that it violated international law and the Philippines rights to explore its resources within its exclusive economic zone.

China has said that it does not recognize the ruling. There are reports that Beijing continues to build more artificial islands in the region, defying the ruling.

TagsAustralia, Indonesia, Freedom of Navigation, South China Sea, International Law, Exclusive economic zone, china