RI vows to remain neutral amid global power shift

Indonesia pledges to maintain its neutral position as the global power is shifting from a unipolar order led by the US into a multipolar one.

Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said Indonesia wanted  zero enemies and dozens of friends, meaning it would be open to possibilities to cooperation in the defense sector with any countries opening their hands to the archipelago.

"That's what we've been doing and we can prove it. Our weaponry comes not only from a single country, instead we diversify them. We're developing cooperation with anyone," Purnomo said Thursday in an interview with The Jakarta Post.

Purnomo cited how the Army Special Force (Kopassus) had cooperated with Australia and China, as well as neighboring Papua New Guinea, Malaysia and Singapore.

"I have to underline, however, that the cooperation must be equal and balanced, without certain requirements for a party. It's important because we are a sovereign country."

The minister added, however, that Indonesia still needed input on how it should position itself amid the process of the global power shifting.

He said that was why in its 1st-year anniversary, the Indonesia Defense University (Unhan), run by the Defense Ministry, organized the two-day seminar themed, "Indonesia Towards 2025: Geopolitical and Security Challenges - Focus on Economy, Natural Resources and Energy Aspects".

"We want to gather views and formulate from them where we will be in 2025. This year's topic is economic, resources and energy, and we want answers," Purnomo said.

He said the seminar, ending on Thursday, concluded that to tackle  future challenges, which include potential conflicts emerging from food, water and energy crisis; countries should establish effective partnerships and boost science and technology innovations.