Coordinating Economy Minister Airlangga Hartarto (center left) and European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic (center right) sign documents on Sept. 23, 2025, during a ceremony on the substantive conclusion of the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) in Nusa Dua, Bali.

From Brussels to Bali: Seizing the prosperous promise of the IEU-CEPA

While Tuesday's signing of the IEU-CEPA is certainly a milestone, unlocking the agreement's tremendous opportunities requires a stronger business environment through broad reforms at home.

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The United Nations at 80: Toward a reborn multilateralism

Indonesia has shown the capacity to play a bridging role when polarization of interests is manifested between the developed and developing worlds, and between the Global North and the Global South. ...

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Collective action urgently needed for water security in Indonesia

Since everyone uses water, it is fair to argue that everyone must be responsible for water conservation and ensuring the well-being of current and future generations. ...

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The Latest

Police officers stand guard on Aug. 1, 2024, at a house used by a terror suspect in Batu, East Java.

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Can violent extremists be de-radicalized?

Engaging both caseworkers and former terrorists in intervention and rehabilitation programs are key to effective de-radicalization efforts.

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An employee arranges rupiah banknotes at Bank Mandiri in Jakarta on June 23, 2022.

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Banks are flush with cash, but who will take the loans?

Banking liquidity in Indonesia is abundant, but without market certainty the funds risk staying idle

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A woman uses a smartphone at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) in South Jakarta to watch President Prabowo Subianto’s State of the Nation Address on Aug. 15, 2025.

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The IPO question: Fostering competition through regulatory reforms

Indonesia needs coordinated systematic reform to transform its capital markets from a collection of well-intentioned programs into an ecosystem that can facilitate enterprises’ journey from early stage ventures into sustainable public companies.

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Iranians chant slogans and wave national flags as they celebrate a ceasefire between Iran and Israel on June 24 at Enghlab Square in Tehran. A fragile ceasefire in the Iran-Israel war appeared to be holding, after 12 days of strikes that saw Israel and the United States launch strikes across the Islamic republic.

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Against the misuse of the snapback mechanism

Iran remains steadfast in asserting its inalienable right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy under the NPT, while at the same time declaring its readiness to engage in constructive and meaningful dialogue.

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The Finance Ministry sign is seen on Jusuf Anwar Building within the ministerial complex on Aug. 10, 2023, in Jakarta in this stock photo.

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Finance ministers and the beautiful game

In soccer terms, finance ministers' strength lies in their ability to connect the lines, distribute the ball and ensure that the team moves in a coordinated way.

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Students eat their mid-day meal during lunch break at a government high school on the outskirts of Hyderabad, India, on Nov. 23, 2021.

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What a mission-oriented approach to school meals could do

When designed properly, school meals represent a powerful opportunity to transform entire food systems, achieve zero hunger, drive economic growth and advance climate and environmental goals.

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A worker sets meal packages to be distributed under the free nutritious meal initiative at a Nutrition Fulfillment Service Unit (SPPG) opened by the Riau Islands Police in Batam, Riau Islands, on Aug. 25, 2025.

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Free meals program is feeding children, but also making them sick

When hundreds of children fall sick at once, families lose faith not only in the free meal program but in the state’s ability to safeguard their health

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Delegates talk on Sept. 9 at the stand of British defense contractors QinetiQ next to a Banshee target drone UAV at Swedish company Mildef's stand at the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) fair at the ExCeL centre, in east London.

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Faster, cheaper weapons for looming conflicts

Modern European states now believe they must rearm, both to keep Ukraine fighting and to prepare themselves for a potential wider looming conflict.

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The floating panels of a solar power plant at Cirata Dam in Purwakarta regency, West Java, are seen from above on Sept. 26, 2023.

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Why does Indonesia still rely on fossil fuel imports?

Geopolitical tensions should serve as a wake-up call to hasten the transition to renewable energy.

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Figurines stand around an opened smartphone in a photo studio in Paris on July 23, 2021.

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The architecture of trust in Indonesia’s digital dawn

Europe offers a useful model. GDPR is enforced by independent data protection authorities. NIS 2 relies on coordination and strict incident reporting. They stand side by side, reinforcing one another without undermining either.

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A worker supervises loading and unloading services on March 28, 2023, at the Jakarta International Container Terminal in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta. According to a recent Statistics Indonesia (BPS) report, Indonesian exports grew 7.13 percent year-on-year in September 2024 to US$23.56 billion, the highest figure since December 2022.

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ASEAN strategic response to current geoeconomic shift

With many economies and sectors depending on the US market, the shock from tariff hike was immediate and has great potential impact on jobs.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) shakes hands with then president-elect Prabowo Subianto on July 31, 2024, during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow.

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Letter to editor: Russian ambassador responds

Russian Ambassador Sergei Tolchenov defends the Indonesia-Russia extradition treaty, rejecting Western narratives on geopolitics, human rights and the Ukraine war while urging bilateral ties to be guided by national interests.

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President Prabowo Subianto receives flowers from the Indonesian diaspora on Sept. 20, 2025, upon his arrival at his hotel in New York, the United States. Prabowo will deliver his speech at the United Nations General Assembly’s general debate on Sept. 23, 2025.

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Prabowo’s debut at the UN: Symbolism without substance?

President Prabowo Subianto must ensure that Indonesia’s calls for peace, whether in Palestine, Ukraine or elsewhere, are grounded in principle and respect for international law, not expedient shortcuts

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United States President Donald Trump looks on during an event on Sept. 2 to announce that the US Space Force Command will move from Colorado to Alabama, in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, the US.

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Lawless state capitalism is no answer to China's rise

Invoking national security and the competition with China, Donald Trump’s administration is pursuing increasingly anti-capitalist and legally dubious interventions into private industry, with potentially high costs for US dynamism.

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US foreign policy is restructuring the world order

Unlike when the US held unipolar power, times have changed as China and the BRICS countries have begun fashioning a non-militarized, multipolar world.

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Female workers plant shallot bulbs at a farm in Kawatuna village, Palu, Central Sulawesi, on Aug. 8, 2024. The regional administration is encouraging farmers to plant shallots, as the food commands high prices in the domestic market.

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How EUDR could leave Indonesian women farmers behind

Women farmers play a vital role in the country's food production and in the management of renewable natural resources on which Indonesia's food security depends.

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This file photo shows French utility EDF's Penly Nuclear Power Plant on Dec. 9, 2022, in Petit-Caux, near Dieppe, France.

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Between coal and atoms: Indonesia’s choice

The choice facing Southeast Asia’s largest nation is not only about energy but about credibility, confidence and its place in history.

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BYD electric cars await export on April 18, 2024, at a port in Yantai, Shandong, China.

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What a China-EU climate deal could do for the world

Chinese green-tech leadership has created an opportunity that the world cannot afford to squander. Europe must work with China to realize that potential.

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President Prabowo Subianto delivers his State of the Nation address on Aug. 15, 2025, during the annual People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) plenary meeting at the Senayan legislative complex in Central Jakarta.

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The words Prabowo needs to say at the UN

Prabowo can deliver the speech of his life, one that cuts through the noise and earns its place in history.

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People wielding weapons looted from the Supreme Court take part in a demonstration in front of the top court in Kathmandu on Sept. 9, 2025, to protest the 19 people who were killed the previous day during anticorruption protests, initially triggered by the Nepali government’s ban on social media platforms.

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Nepal’s Gen Z revolt: The economic lesson for democracies

The violent protests in Nepal demonstrate that democracy and development are inherently intertwined, and that governments must balance the dual goal of economic growth and shared prosperity.

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A sarcophagus depicting a purple cow is paraded on April 14, 2024,
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Culture, not construction, drives tourism success

Modern tourists seek more than just a place to stay: they want stories and experiences.

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President Prabowo Subianto (center) gives a salute after addressing newly elected regional leaders during the last day of a week-long retreat at the military academy in Magelang, Central Java, on Feb. 28, 2025.

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A call for a phased approach to fiscal decentralization

Lower government spending will reduce purchasing power, and increase unemployment and poverty.

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Protesters are blocked by police with shields during a demonstration on Aug. 25 demanding the dissolution of the House of Representatives on a street in front of the Senayan Legislative Complex in Central Jakarta.

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High-cost, low-productivity legislature

Data shows that House 2024 budget reached $663 million, far higher than Vietnam’s or the Philippines’ legislatures, which each spend only $150–300 million annually.

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Police fire tear gas to disperse demonstrators during a protest on Aug. 29 against the Mobile Brigade Corps (Brimbob), after the death of a motorbike taxi driver the previous night, in front of the governor's residence in Surabaya.

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Embers of trust: Social cohesion in a fractured Southeast Asia

Social cohesion forms a critical foundation for the capacity of communities to coexist and legitimizes governance through accountability. Yet across Southeast Asia, the fabric of social cohesion is demonstrably fraying and we must not look away.

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Displaced Palestinians move with their belongings southwards on Sept. 16 on a road in the Nuseirat refugee camp area in the central Gaza Strip following renewed Israeli evacuation orders for Gaza City.

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Doctors can’t stop a genocide, world leaders can

Every day in Gaza, children arrive at our clinics with blast injuries, infected wounds or signs of starvation. As doctors, we can try to treat their pain – but we cannot stop the bombs or lift the siege.

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President Prabowo Subianto (right) inaugurates Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa (center) as finance minister at the State Palace in Jakarta on Sept. 8, 2025.

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Purbayanomics and the Rp 200 trillion question

Stimulus drawn from reserves can jolt the economy today, but it also narrows Indonesia’s room for maneuver tomorrow.

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Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel march outside the National Monument (Monas) complex on Sept. 2, amid widespread anti-government protests and rioting over issues such as extra pay for lawmakers and their housing allowances that resulted in riots which escalated after a motorcycle taxi (ojol) driver was killed by a police vehicle, in Jakarta.

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Back to barracks and back to basics: The only path to a professional TNI

TNI’s hard power consists of older platforms and has limitations in modern network-centric warfare, making it vulnerability to attacks from enemies with advanced cyber capabilities and more sophisticated air defense systems.

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