To survive in an unstable world, Indonesia must master the delicate art of the middle way: keeping a firm hand at the center while fixing the fractured, graft-prone machinery of regional autonomy.

The grouping increasingly represents emerging and middle powers across regions that share common development priorities and seek a greater voice in institutions shaping global affairs.

From the perspective of Indonesia’s national health policy, AI is an innovation. Ensuring that innovation is safe, equitable and trustworthy is a critical issue when it comes to AI in the health sector. 

The people's fight against oligarchy, corruption and foreign dependence won't be won by sliding back into authoritarianism, but by building a democracy strong enough to hold power to account.

Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono's recent political messaging can be interpreted as an attempt to achieve a delicate balancing act: positioning himself and the Democratic Party as a critical voice within government without crossing the line into outright opposition. It is a strategy born from both opportunity and necessity. For Agus, the political challenge is obvious. While he remains one of Indonesia's most recognizable younger politicians, he has not consistently appeared among the top-tier contenders in most discussions about the 2029 presidential election.

The return of haze underscores a sobering reality: while ASEAN has policies designed to combat it, the problem continues to occur.

When environmental crises cross borders, government communication becomes crucial to managing their impacts and protecting Indonesia’s international reputation.

Middle powers are critically important in at least two spheres of influence: in the UN and in protection against mass atrocities.  

AI agents need protective layers, not a lecture about good behavior.

The future job market belongs not to those waiting for a vacancy, but to the graduates equipped to turn society’s friction into economic opportunity.

America’s inability to protect bases in the Persian Gulf and Jordan and its regional allies’ territory signals a historic blow to its imperial system.

Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa was removed as finance minister after just over a year in office, marking the second time President Prabowo Subianto has replaced the country’s finance minister in less than two years. Prabowo appointed former deputy finance minister Suahasil Nazara to replace him, making Suahasil the third person to hold the position since Prabowo took office. The abrupt change followed months of contentious reforms, fiscal policies and plans that increasingly brought Purbaya into conflict with officials within the Finance Ministry and with other institutions.

Relying solely on executive orders and administrative decrees is fundamentally insufficient for a technology this consequential.

The flames may eventually die down, but for the wildlife trapped in Indonesia’s charred forests, the real crisis of hunger, trauma and displacement has only just begun.

Indonesia is entering an era of bigger defense budgets and small budgetary visibility. Yet the institutions that allow the legislature and the public to determine where money goes have not strengthened.

The public has been handed a reform that was quietly rendered toothless months before its scheduled arrival.

Indonesia faces an unfortunate fiscal paradox: Just as the government has cut disaster-mitigation funding to the bone, disasters have struck with unforgiving regularity. President Prabowo Subianto himself has acknowledged that disasters are part and parcel of life in the archipelago. Yet his administration has slashed the National Disaster Mitigation Agency’s (BNPB) budget to just Rp 491 billion (US$28 million) this year, raising a fundamental question: How much can Indonesia afford to save on preparing for disasters?

The 100-gigawatt solar ambition is no longer about hitting a target, it is about turning homegrown clean power into our next great economic engine.

Rebranding gig drivers as "entrepreneurs" might polish government employment data, but no administrative label can turn precarious, low-productivity survival into a genuine path to prosperity.

A regional administration that fixes flawed infrastructure after it goes viral isn't setting the standard for leadership. It's merely doing the bare minimum.

This obscure member of the rare earths family is going to be high on the agenda when China's President Xi Jinping meets with United States President Donald Trump later this month in Washington.

The more useful question for Indonesia is why its students fall behind, and what can be done about it.

The new finance minister may reassure nervous markets, but the real test begins when fiscal discipline inevitably collides with President Prabowo’s expansive political ambitions.

At the United Nations' 81st General Assembly, member states will be close to choosing the next secretary-general, who will immediately be confronted not only by many global crises, but also by the UN’s diminished finances.

From the poisoning of Munir to an acid attack left unpunished, Indonesia’s military justice system reveals a chilling truth: impunity isn’t a breakdown of the law, but a calculated display of power.

Closer relations present a moment to revisit whether the partnership has mutually benefited our peoples and contributed to the greater global public good amid such an unpredictable international environment. 

At the 11th Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, President Prabowo Subianto announced plans by Russian aluminum producer Rusal to invest in an Indonesian processing plant, part of broader efforts to deepen bilateral economic ties. Yet the planned investment comes amid intensifying geoeconomic rivalry among major powers, raising questions over whether Indonesia can deepen ties with Russia without compromising its strategic flexibility. The test is whether Indonesia can remain both bebas (free) and aktif (active).