Following a meeting with his American counterpart Lloyd Austin in Jakarta on Monday, Indonesian Minister of Defence Prabowo Subianto declared that the United States (US) “has never pressured us to cease our relationship with China.”
“I have openly declared many times that we consider China to be a friendly nation,” he stated, adding that Jakarta “values” its relations with Beijing.
Indonesia selalu berusaha untuk menjaga hubungan terbaik dengan semua bangsa demi memajukan Indo-Pasifik yang lebih terhubung, sejahtera, aman, tangguh serta bebas dan terbuka.
— Prabowo Subianto (@prabowo) November 22, 2022
Saya percaya untuk mencapai ini perlu kerja sama dan partisipasi negara-negara Indo-Pasifik. pic.twitter.com/lJaw7CQUOE
“Our American friends know this and respect this,” Prabowo stressed. Keeping this in mind, he said being friends with both superpowers makes it easy to maintain communication in case of tension.
Though Indonesia and China share “very good” ties, Jakarta has expressed concern about Beijing encroaching upon its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea. In this respect, Prabowo emphasised that any possible misunderstandings and differences in opinion between Indonesia and China related to territorial waters should be resolved with “dialogue, a friendly attitude, and with a friendly relationship.”
China and four Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members claim to have control over the South China Sea, which is rich in minerals and fish and also important for many crucial shipping routes. However, ASEAN and China do not have any mechanism to resolve the dispute as of yet.
It's remarkable how far Indonesia is now willing to go with the US military because of continued Chinese threats within Jakarta's EEZ. That said, nonalignment and balance will remain hallmarks of Indonesian policy. https://t.co/H0LlF4Djr4
— Derek J. Grossman (@DerekJGrossman) November 21, 2022
Both Austin and Prabowo are expected to meet with their Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe in Cambodia on Tuesday for the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus.
Prabowo also revealed that Indonesia is in the “advanced stages” of negotiations to buy 36 US-made F-15 fighter jets from Boeing, in a deal worth around $14 billion. Though the US Department of State approved the sale in February, Boeing was not on board with Indonesia paying for the jets in instalments. To this end, Prabowo admitted that Boeing has now “agreed to the financial package. The big question has been arranged so everything is in place.”
The US State Department, in February, had approved the potential sale of Boeing F-15ID aircraft and related equipment to Indonesia in a deal valued at up to US$13.9 billion.
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) November 21, 2022
Since 2019, Prabowo has visited many weapons-producing nations, including the US, Russia, China, and France, to procure military equipment as part of President Joko Widodo’s vision to modernise the armed forces.
“I like to emphasise that Indonesia always takes the position of trying to maintain the best relationships with all nations, especially all the major powers,” Prabowo underscored, adding that Indonesia shares a “longstanding relationship” with both Russia and China and as a sovereign state “reserves the right to use and acquire military equipment from many countries.”
It was great to see 🇮🇩 Defense Minister @prabowo again to discuss our bilateral defense partnership. We committed to further enhancing defense cooperation and interoperability between our two militaries. We also reaffirmed our unwavering support for a #FreeandOpenIndoPacific. pic.twitter.com/5Bb6HHew4I
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) November 21, 2022
Austin also expressed support for Indonesia’s modernisation of its defence systems and capabilities, saying, “We want to continue to be helpful in any way we can.”
Meanwhile, according to a readout from the US Department of Defense, the pair “agreed to expand bilateral military training and education, including through hosting new language training courses, expanding cooperation for emerging defense leaders, and enhancing combined exercises such as Garuda Shield, one of the Department’s largest multinational exercises in the Indo-Pacific region.”
In Jakarta, @SecDef Lloyd Austin praised Indonesia for hosting “super” version of military exercises with US and 12 other nations—the Garuda Shield. Also thanked Indonesia for voting to condemn Russia war on Ukraine—something Biden admin would like to see from India & China, too. pic.twitter.com/8nLIsSBLG0
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) November 21, 2022
“The United States is proud to partner with you as we work together to advance our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Austin underlined, adding, “We’re continuing to expand the scope and complexity of our engagements.”
Prabowo also affirmed that Indonesia supports continued American presence in the Indo-Pacific. “The United States has always been a good friend to us in our times of needs,” he asserted.