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Jakarta Post

Strengthening US-Indonesia relationship

The US and Indonesia have an opportunity together to make further progress to combat climate change, the existential crisis of our generation.

Ami Bera (Washington, DC)
Wed, December 8, 2021

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Strengthening US-Indonesia relationship President of Indonesia Joko (AFP/Brendan Smialowski)
G20 Indonesia 2022

I had the honor of leading a congressional delegation of United States House of Representative members to Jakarta, the first such visit since the COVID-19 pandemic began nearly two years ago.

Our visit came on the heels of a positive meeting between US President Joe Biden and Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at the climate conference (COP26) in Glasgow, the first in-person meeting since the two leaders took office.

Although much has changed since US Congressional members last visited Indonesia, Jakarta’s strong voice in ASEAN and leadership role in the broader Indo-Pacific has remained constant. Our high-level meetings with Indonesian cabinet and parliamentary members highlighted Indonesia’s economic and strategic prominence—both of which will be on further display with Indonesia's Group of 20 presidency in 2022.

Given our common interest in promoting a peaceful, prosperous, and stable Indo-Pacific, the US and Indonesia must work jointly to advance our many shared priorities.

First is the need for continued cooperation to defeat COVID-19 by vaccinating as many people as possible. The US has donated 16.9 million doses of vaccines to Indonesia this year and committed more than US$77 million to support Jakarta’s COVID-19 response. We can further work together to enhance the capacity of the Indonesian pharmaceutical sector—one of the fastest growing in Asia—to manufacture vaccines and medicines.

Second, the US and Indonesia should partner in rebuilding and diversifying global supply chains. The global health crisis caused severe disruptions across many sectors and exposed the vulnerabilities of relying excessively on a select few countries. As the world slowly recovers from the pandemic, the US should work closely with trusted partners such as Indonesia to secure our supply chains and prevent them from being potentially used as leverage.

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Such investments in the bilateral economic relationship are particularly relevant at a time when Indonesia has sought to lift bureaucratic obstacles that traditionally hampered foreign direct investment.

Third is the urgent need to find a durable solution to the crisis in Myanmar. I am particularly concerned by the likelihood of escalated violence from the Myanmar military during the oncoming dry season. Indonesia has been a responsible leader on this issue since the February coup in Myanmar, working tirelessly with other ASEAN countries to finalize the five-point consensus and to try and facilitate constructive dialogue between the Tatmadaw (Myanmar military) and the democratic opposition.

Washington should continue to partner with ASEAN countries to ensure humanitarian assistance can get to the Myanmar people and prevent the humanitarian crisis from worsening while supporting ASEAN’s central role in responding to the crisis.

Fourth, our countries should further our cooperation in the maritime space in defense of Indonesia’s sovereignty near the Natuna Islands and our collective rights to freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.

As certain regional actors continue to assert their unlawful maritime claims and disrupt regional stability, the US and Indonesia should enhance bilateral security cooperation and bolster the region’s own capabilities to ensure a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific.

Finally, as we look ahead to Indonesia’s presidency of the G20 in 2022, the US and Indonesia have an opportunity together to make further progress to combat climate change, the existential crisis of our generation. As one of the first countries in the developing world to sign on to the Global Methane Pledge, Indonesia has demonstrated its commitment to be a climate leader.

We should build on the trust and cooperation our two nations have developed through our bilateral climate working group to create opportunities to attract public and private financing required to achieve higher climate ambition.

As the second and third largest democracies in the world, the US and Indonesia benefit from building on the momentum created after the recent meeting between President Biden and President Jokowi as well as our fruitful Congressional delegation visit to Jakarta.

As chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, I look forward to further strengthening the US-Indonesian Strategic Partnership to advance a peaceful and prosperous Southeast Asia and broader Indo-Pacific region.

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The writer is chairman of the United States House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia, and Nonproliferation.

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