Indonesia has started counting its . It wants to locate and name 1,700 islands in for a UN on geographical names in August. Indonesia wants the islands and rights surrounding them so its neighbors can't claim . Indonesia says fishing is costing of dollars in money each year. A spokeswoman said 60% of islands in Indonesia don't have a name or status, so other countries can take them.
Indonesia is the world's largest . In 2012, it registered 13,466 islands but there could be 17,508. The UN says an island is, "a formed of , surrounded by water, which is still exposed at tide". It is a big to count the islands. A spokesman said: "We have to visit every of these islands, and then we note the , the name, the of the name…and describe the landscape and its history."
