New Delhi and Jakarta are now joining hands with a strategic vision to back their bilateral ties after largely ignoring each other even as their strategic interests have been converging rapidly
India and Indonesia—two major powers in the Indo-Pacific—are now joining hands with a strategic vision to back their bilateral ties. For far too long, these two powers have largely ignored each other even as their strategic interests have been converging rapidly. Even under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian president Joko Widodo, New Delhi and Jakarta have taken too long to reach out to each other. But at least a beginning is now being made. Widodo’s visit to India this week was the first presidential visit from Indonesia to India in nearly six years.
The two nations took aim at China’s aggressive stance on South China Sea when they “stressed the importance of resolving disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law, including UNCLOS”. This is significant as both India and Indonesia do not have a direct stake in this dispute. But both are concerned about China’s territorial expansionism and its reluctance to abide by global norms. Modi and Widodo also want their nations to emerge as major maritime powers to ensure a stable maritime order in the region, one that is under stress because of China’s rapid rise and America’s growing reluctance to be the sole guarantor of regional security. Where India is worried about the security of the sea lanes of communication in the larger Indo-Pacific, Indonesia has been concerned about Chinese maritime intrusions near the Natuna islands, which it claims as part of its exclusive economic zone, as well as Chinese attempts in the past to include the island chain in its territorial maps.
Against the backdrop of the rapidly changing security agenda facing the two nations, they have also now agreed to focus on their defence and security ties in order to jointly combat terrorism and organised crime. Their joint statement condemned terrorism in all forms, underscoring “zero tolerance” for acts of terrorism. It asked all nations to work towards eliminating terrorist safe havens and infrastructure, disrupting terrorist networks and their financing channels and stopping cross-border terrorism. In a message to China, which has been blocking India’s move to get Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar designated a global terrorist, the two nations called upon all countries to implement the UN Security Council Resolution 1267 (banning militant groups and their leaders) and other resolutions designating terrorist entities. The two nations also underline the need to combat and eliminate “illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing” and recognized transnational organized fisheries crime as one of the emerging crimes which needs to be tackled on an urgent basis.
India and Indonesia are also among the very few fast-growing large economies today. They have also decided to give a major boost to their trade and investment ties by focusing on the areas of oil and gas, renewable energy, information technology and pharmaceuticals. It is expected that bilateral trade between the two may grow to $60 billion over the next decade from the present volume of around $15 billion. Both Modi and Widodo are working towards making their respective countries attractive destinations for global investors.
India and Indonesia have been gradually enhancing their security and political ties. The two signed a strategic partnership agreement in 2005 that started an annual strategic dialogue. The next year, they ratified a defence cooperation agreement, initially signed in 2001, which focused on areas of defence supplies and technology, as well as on joint projects. The two have signed an extradition treaty and also a “mutual legal assistance treaty” for gathering and exchanging information to enforce their laws. Joint naval exercises and patrols, and regular port calls by their respective navies, have become a regular feature of the India-Indonesia relationship in recent years. India has also become a major source of military hardware for Jakarta.
Such cooperation is a natural result of geography. Indonesia’s location, combined with its naval forces, allows it to work effectively with India to ensure security in the sea lanes of communication between Europe, the Middle East and South-East Asia. Together, they control the entry point from the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean to the Strait of Malacca. Similarities in democratic governing systems and broad foreign-policy outlooks have helped dramatically: Viewing India’s maritime presence as benign, Indonesia has openly invited India to help littoral states in the region maintain the Strait’s security.
But despite this, the two nations have not been very successful in carving out a security partnership which can meet the challenges of this era. Despite being neighbours with shared cultural and historical links, the two nations had been distant in many ways, as exemplified by the lack of direct air connectivity between the two. The launch of direct air services between the two countries during Widodo’s visit to India is perhaps a signal that finally, ties between the two nations are also set for a launch. Widodo’s visit has not only marked another step in India’s “Act East” policy of encouraging greater engagement with, and integration between, India and South-East Asia but has also signalled that the two large democracies in Asia are growing closer as authoritarian China grows more menacing and America’s future posture towards Asia continues to be mired in uncertainty.
Time for Delhi and Jakarta to get serious
This commentary originally appeared in Live Mint.
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Professor Harsh V. Pant is Vice President – Studies and Foreign Policy at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. He is a Professor of International Relations ...
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