"With the outlook prepared by Indonesia, adopted by ASEAN and then appreciated by the world, we want to spread our geopolitical perspective," Retno said. "We also have to translate it into concrete cooperation, because now diplomacy is required to produce results for the people. And that is why we want to hold the Indo-Pacific infrastructure and connectivity forum."

In the first working meeting between the Foreign Ministry and the House of Representatives Commission I overseeing foreign affairs on Tuesday, Retno said that countries that responded positively to the adoption of the ASEAN outlook might be the source of fresh funding for any future cooperation under the Indo-Pacific framework.

“So Indonesia is thinking, when the countries have the funds for cooperation, why don't we discuss this cooperation here in Indonesia when we, the government, are also prioritizing infrastructure and human resource development?” Retno said.

The term Indo-Pacific has often been associated with United States President Donald Trump’s vision of the Indo-Pacific, which observers say intends to hedge against the Chinese economic expansion being carried out through the multibillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

However, Indonesia continued to push for ASEAN to have its own Indo-Pacific concept. Following Indonesia's initiative, ASEAN leaders adopted the document during the ASEAN Summit in Bangkok on June 22, setting it as a guideline for member states to engage with their external partners, including rivaling superpowers the US and China.

In another ASEAN Summit in Bangkok earlier this month, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo invited various countries, including the US and China, as well as regional powers Japan, India and Australia, to participate at the upcoming Indo-Pacific forum.

Retno said in response to a question by Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Sturman Panjaitan in the Tuesday meeting that the adoption of the outlook was somewhat of a translation of Indonesia’s vision of the Global Maritime Fulcrum (GMF),

"One of the areas of cooperation is on maritime issues […] So ASEAN’s Indo-Pacific Outlook, to some extent, is a translation of the maritime fulcrum," she said.

At the beginning of his first term, Jokowi pledged to capitalize on Indonesia’s geographic position to make Indonesia a “fulcrum” of Indo-Pacific maritime activity. Indonesia controls four vital sea lanes of communication for international trade and shipping — the Malacca, Sunda, Lombok and Makassar straits — three of which link the Indian and Pacific oceans.

The vision was later translated in the 2017 presidential regulation on Indonesia’s sea policy and the responsibility to realize the idea fell on the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister, then led by Luhut Pandjaitan.

Following his inauguration for the second term in office, Jokowi expanded the role of the office of the coordinating minister by granting it a new mandate to keep an eye on national priority programs and other policies adopted in Cabinet meetings. Jokowi maintained Luhut as the coordinating minister and changed the name of the office to the Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister. It is expected to speed up infrastructure projects and solve investment bottlenecks.

"Making Indonesia the global maritime fulcrum as well as addressing investment barriers and realizing big investment commitments will be in [Luhut’s] hands," Jokowi said when announcing Luhut’s new role in the Cabinet. (ipa)

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