THE Indonesian government says it has no knowledge of any asylum seeker boats being turned around by the Australian navy.
Media reports from Australia and Indonesia say an Ashmore Island-bound boat was turned back either last month or on Monday - or possibly on both occasions - and subsequently became stranded on Rote Island, near West Timor.
The Indonesian reports quote local police, while Fairfax Media quotes unnamed Australian defence sources and the Indonesian water police.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has said for "operational security reasons" he would not comment on the conflicting reports, despite the coalition having a pre-election policy to turn back boats.
Agus Barnas, spokesman for Indonesia's Coordinating Ministry for Politics, Law and Security, said he was unaware of any turnbacks, but he said: "If the Australian navy reject that boat, basically it's their right."
He said Indonesia was observing a moratorium on co-operating with Australia on people-smuggling after last year's spying scandal.
"So far, there's no policy that the co-operation would resume," Mr Barnas said. "The talk on forming a code of conduct is still in process."
Speculation about a possible boat turnback, or turnbacks, follows a stand-off in November when Australia tried to force a vessel back into Indonesian waters.
The Abbott government backed down after Indonesia refused to accept the asylum seekers, who were eventually transferred to Christmas Island.
Mr Morrison said on Tuesday that Australia respected Indonesia's territorial sovereignty, "and will continue to do so".
"It is not the policy or practice of the Australian government to violate Indonesian territorial sovereignty," he said in a statement.
"Any suggestion to the contrary is false."
The Greens said Mr Morrison should provide details of any turnback operation, which they say could have endangered the lives of the asylum seekers.
"These people could have drowned. How many other boats has this occurred to that we've never heard about?" Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young told the ABC.
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