Indonesia, key Indo-Pacific ‘strategic spectator’ agrees to strengthen cooperation with China

Jakarta [Indonesia], April 18 (ANI): At a time when Indo-Pacific maritime issues have gripped several nations, Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, has said that Jakarta and Beijing have agreed upon strengthening cooperation and bilateral relations.

The announcement came after the Indonesian Foreign Minister met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Jakarta on Thursday.

Wang stated that both China and Indonesia wished to see the region remain stable and peaceful.

He also urged moderation on the part of all sides involved in the Gaza conflict.

Wang is also expected to preside over the fourth meeting of the China-Indonesia High-Level Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism in Jakarta. Wang’s trip to Indonesia, Cambodia, and Papua New Guinea begins on April 23 and will culminate on the same day.

Often seen as a ‘strategic spectator’ in the Indo-Pacific region, Indonesia is a key player in Southeast Asia. Indonesia’s economy continues to grow at a fast pace, and it stands as the world’s fourth most populated country.

Wang will preside over two sessions of the China-Cambodia Intergovernmental Coordination Committee after chairing a meeting of the China-Indonesia High-level Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism, according to Jakarta Post.

He will conclude the journey in Papua New Guinea, where Beijing has been making an effort to lessen the influence of the US and Australia in recent years.

When President-elect Prabowo Subianto travelled to China at the start of April last year, President Xi Jinping commended their relationship and outlined his plans for promoting peace in the region.

China is a major contributor of foreign direct investment to Indonesia, having invested billions of dollars in various projects across the nation’s archipelago.

Malaysia’s limited deterrence capacity and unwillingness to invest heavily in border security have resulted in an increase in the assertiveness of Chinese incursions in the South China Sea as Beijing has been demanding that both Malaysia and Indonesia cease their oil exploration and exploitation on the contested continental shelves.

Malaysia and Indonesia are not without options in how they deal with Chinese maritime incursions. These options range from undertaking legal challenges to harnessing external powers’ interest in balancing Beijing.

In recent years, Malaysia and Indonesia have been faced with repeated incursions by Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessels into disputed areas of the South China Sea, The Diplomat reported.

In the case of Malaysia, these are the waters off the coast of Sabah and Sarawak, and in the case of Indonesia, the waters north of the Natuna Islands.

These two regions intersect with Beijing’s “nine-dash line,” which Beijing has since 2009 claimed as an exclusive maritime jurisdiction, including an assertion of ownership over the water column and continental shelf.