Following last month’s confirmation of Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s reelection, speculation is rife that the President will overhaul his Cabinet line up with a gaggle of fresh faces for his second term in office.

While the President has received suggestions aplenty for a shortlist of prospective ministers, international relations experts believe the foreign policy team led by Retno LP Marsudi will remain unchanged — unless Jokowi decides to take a different approach altogether.

Criticized as a foreign policy novice at the beginning of his term, Jokowi has over the course of five years warmed to the idea of representing Indonesia on the global stage, although some officials privately say he still dislikes travelling long distances.

He has focused most of his attention on building infrastructure and initiating development projects at home and has said that he will not be making significant changes to his approach on international politics during his second term.

Key to the continuity of Indonesia’s foreign policy was the country’s first female foreign minister, Retno, who was in sync with the President’s approach to international relations, said Hikmahanto Juwana, foreign policy observer and international law professor at the University of Indonesia.

He argued that Retno was a good match for Jokowi, who emphasized bilateral engagement, the protection of citizens overseas and attracting foreign investment.

“Because Jokowi focuses more on what Indonesia can get from abroad and less on the multilateral [aspects of diplomacy], Retno is a suitable minister,” Hikmahanto said earlier this week.

Retno was highly regarded by observers and diplomats in Jakarta for delivering on a number of Jokowi’s foreign policy priorities, including the ASEAN endorsement of a shared Indo-Pacific Outlook and securing a seat on the United Nations Security Council. Prior to her appointment as a minister, Retno had held various positions as a career diplomat.

“If we look at her track record, she has dealt more with bilateral affairs than multilateral affairs. She worked in ASEAN affairs at the outset of her career but later came to manage bilateral issues, with her last post as Indonesian ambassador to the Netherlands,” Hikmahanto said.

He compared Jokowi to his predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who took a greater interest in multilateralism, making his appointment of foreign ministers Hassan Wirajuda and later Marty Natalegawa “a good match”.

Jokowi was comfortable with delegating the responsibility of attending international summits to Retno and Vice President Jusuf Kalla — an internationally renowned statesman in his own right.

During his first four years in office, the President skipped the United Nations General Assembly and attended just a handful of summits under the banner of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation, while choosing to appear at meetings with a heavy focus on the economy.

Hikmahanto refused to name names when asked for alternatives to Retno, saying only that “it should be based on what Jokowi wants in the next five years”.

He noted, however, that if the President wanted a noncareer diplomat to fill the post, the question to ask was whether any such candidate had prior experience with the diplomatic corps. “Not to mention any vested interests they may have for the next five years — we don’t want a foreign minister who oversteps his duty to the President,” he added.

Jokowi, who will be sworn in again on Oct. 20, has openly invited suggestions from various sides about the Cabinet line up, including from political parties. The National Awakening Party (PKB) and the NasDem Party have reportedly proposed 10 to 11 names for consideration, although various officials insist Jokowi has the final say.

Teuku Rezasyah, an international relations expert from Padjadjaran University in Bandung, West Java, said that, while the foreign minister post was traditionally reserved for career diplomats, a precedent had been set for political appointees, most recently by former president Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid who gave the post to PKB politician Alwi Shihab.

“There are pros and cons [to a political appointment]: On the one hand, ideas conveyed by Alwi Shihab to Gus Dur could immediately be taken into consideration as policy, so there was very [...] little confusion between the State Palace and the Foreign Ministry,” Rezasyah said. “But the problem was that Shihab found himself in the awkward position of not knowing the corporate value [of the ministry] and that he was very dependent on his staff when [naming officials to posts] at the Foreign Ministry and abroad.”

On the other hand, Rezasyah said Jokowi was spoilt for choice with qualified candidates from within the diplomatic ranks — Deputy Foreign Minister AM Fachir, Asia-Pacific and African Affairs Director General Desra Percaya, Ambassador to Germany Arif Havas Oegroseno and Ambassador to the UN in Geneva Hasan Kleib — should he want someone other than Retno.

“Jokowi has a very wide range of options; whoever he chooses, the public will not oppose, because of their professional experience and measurable statesmanship,” he said. “This is what distinguishes the Foreign Ministry from other ministries.”

Other names that have emerged in discussions as ministerial candidates include Mahendra Siregar, Indonesia’s former investment chief and current ambassador to the United States, and Rizal Sukma, ambassador in London and Jokowi’s foreign policy advisor in 2014.

None of those named, including Retno, were willing to entertain questions about the planned reshuffle. (dis/tjs)