Indonesia and Australia have discussed conducting joint patrols in the South China Sea, saying they want to "deepen" their maritime partnership.
The idea for the joint patrols in the hotly contested waters was raised during a meeting between Australian defence minister Marise Payne, her Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop in Bali on Thursday evening.
Defence ministry spokesman Djundan Eko Bintoro said on Monday that at this stage, it was simply a proposal.
"There's no agreement yet. He (Mr Ryacudu) said he will talk about it with Australia," Mr Bintoro told AAP.
No further details were available, he added.
It's not clear what agencies would be involved were such exercises to go ahead.
Australia and Indonesia already conduct joint sea patrols, with Australian Border Force and the Indonesian Coast Guard completing exercises in the Timor Sea earlier this year as part of the countries' partnership on combating people smuggling and illegal fishing.
In a joint statement released after the meeting, Australia and Indonesia noted they were "natural maritime partners" and that they had discussed "practical steps to deepen and broaden bilateral maritime engagement".
Speaking during her visit to Bali last week, Ms Bishop told AAP that concerns about heightening tensions in the South China Sea had spilled into talks between Indian Ocean nations in Indonesia, with countries expressing a need for a rules-based order.
Calls for such order to be respected have been stepped up since the July decision in the Hague, which rejected China's claims over large swathes of the ocean.
Despite the ruling, China has continued with its expansionist activities at Scarborough Shoal and other sites in the South China Sea.
Ms Bishop also reiterated Australia's support for Indonesia's push to finally secure a Code of Conduct for the hotly contested waters - something that has remained elusive for more than a decade.
"We have urged the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nation) countries and China to conclude a Code of Conduct as soon as possible otherwise it leaves it open for others to suggest that the parties aren't serious about a code."
