The AUKUS pact includes the agreement that the US and the UK will help Australia to develop nuclear-powered submarines, as well as enhance their joint capabilities and interoperability. While China was not mentioned directly in the announcement, it is clear that AUKUS was formed to counter the Asian giant, whose military rise and territorial claims have become a source of regional security concerns in recent years.

China’s recent military rise represents the largest expansion of maritime and aerospace power in several decades. It has grown its long-range missile force, increased its number of bomber aircraft, and modernized its navy into a blue-water force capable of operating globally across the blue oceans. It also has territorial disputes with its neighbors, including US allies and partners, on land and sea.

Those reasons have led the US to pursue strategies to balance against China from gaining too much power and threatening itself and its allies. Before AUKUS, the US had also formed the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) for the same purpose.

Unsurprisingly, China has responded in opposition to both US-led initiatives. Experts predict that tensions between the two powers will keep increasing after the AUKUS formation.

In response to the AUKUS announcement, Indonesia expressed concerns that Australia’s nuclear-powered submarines program could aggravate the arms race and power projection in the region. Indonesia also called all parties concerned to settle their differences peacefully by advancing dialogue. The statement suggests that Indonesia is still in denial of its position amid potential conflicts in the region.

Indonesia has long been a party to these tensions, most notably regarding the territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Parts of China’s unilaterally claimed nine-dash line in the region overlap with Indonesia’s exclusive economic zone north of the Natuna waters. However, Indonesia has remained a non-claimant state in the disputes, presenting itself as an “honest broker”.