We hope the leaders of two predominantly Muslim nations will jointly condemn the plan, which constitutes ethnic cleansing as it seeks to forcibly remove all Gazans from their homeland. Given their leverage in various multilateral and regional organizations, Indonesia and Turkey can spearhead a global campaign to help reach lasting peace in Gaza.  

Both Turkey and Indonesia are members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Group of 20 and the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation.

Erdoğan, who is on a trip to Malaysia, Indonesia and Pakistan, openly rejected Trump’s plan, saying the Palestinians have lived in the territory for thousands of years. No one has the right to force the Palestinians in Gaza to endure a second Nakhba, the mass displacement of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israel war.

We call on President Prabowo to end his silence on the American President’s intention to build Gaza anew but deprive the Palestinian people’s right to live there. Prabowo should speak up together with Erdoğan after their bilateral summit against any attempt to jeopardize the fragile ceasefire. Trump’s initiative is a direct attack on peace in Gaza.

Prabowo can also learn from his guest, who is known as a key actor in global affairs, including in matters related to the Middle East. Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim nation, which is why it is natural to expect President Prabowo to play a more prominent role on the international stage, especially in defending the right of Palestine and of all mankind to independence.

Jakarta has strong economic ties with Ankara, but the two countries have encountered difficult times, such as in the import of wheat from Turkey. In 2022, Turkey's exports to Indonesia totaled US$410 million, while imports from Indonesia amounted to $2.7 billion. In the following year, Indonesia recorded a trade surplus of $1.47 billion with Turkey.

Several agreements on economic and military cooperation, especially on weaponry, are expected to be signed after Prabowo and Erdoğan attend the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSC) between the two countries’ senior officials.

Erdoğan first visited Indonesia in 2005, while he was prime minister, to officiate a large number of houses built for the victims of the December 2004 tsunami in Aceh. As president-elect, Prabowo paid a courtesy call to Erdoğan in Ankara in July last year.

Rumors of strained ties spread after a video showed Erdoğan walking out when Prabowo delivered a speech at the D-8 summit in Cairo last December. Both sides strongly denied the speculation, and Erdoğan’s visit simply confirms that the rumors are baseless.

The relationship between the two nations has withstood the test of time. It will only grow stronger for the foreseeable future.