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Come, recover together
The proposition of inviting Ukraine to the G20 Summit looks to be the best compromise Indonesia can offer to appease the West.
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The main meeting room for the Group of 20 finance ministers meeting in Jakarta on Feb. 16. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)
Indonesia’s Group of 20 presidency coincides with one of the most trying times in human history since World War II, so it would be naive to assume that all the pieces would simply fall into place.
From the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the looming climate crisis to the effects of a volatile global economy and polarizing political discourse, heavy is the burden on global leaders in this day and age.
One would think it would be enough to unite the world under the slogan, “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”, but just as the global health crisis weighs differently for each individual, so is it also the case for nation-states.
For now, Indonesia must contend with the faraway conflict between Ukraine and Russia, which threatens to pull the rug of long peace from under our collective feet.
From a global leadership standpoint, few options are available, given how complicated the situation is. Jakarta does not want to be seen as abandoning partnerships at the expense of geopolitics, while at the same time, the issue is not something any nation can simply ignore.
At this point, the proposition of inviting Ukraine to the G20 Summit looks to be the best compromise Indonesia can offer to appease the West without ruining its working relationship with Russia.
Members of the minilateral Group of Seven may have tabled the idea, but the proposal itself could put Indonesia in a good position to do what Australia was unable to do under its own G20 presidency in 2014, after Vladimir Putin’s Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula.
So, even though Indonesia may want to remain steadfast in pursuing its G20 priority agenda, adding Ukraine to its invitation list could help bolster its presidency.
Such a compromise ensures that Indonesia is able to act as an honest broker in the Russo-Ukrainian affair, while also maintaining its duties with integrity. In order to recover together, we must first come together in peace.
The G20 meetings are notorious for attracting protests anyway. So, with President Putin’s imminent arrival in Bali, it would be the smart thing to preempt any public outcry – not by suppression, but by facilitating an outlet. Besides, what harm could one more event do to the G20 schedule?
If taken on board, Indonesia would have an opportunity to set up the G20 Summit as prime neutral ground for peace-building efforts, in line with its foreign policy objectives. It may even become the perfect foil to resurrect a Non-Aligned Movement that had once given countries a third option to rally behind in the Cold War.
It won’t be easy, as Indonesia would have to insist as host that it won’t allow its presidency to be misappropriated.
There are also security risks involved in bringing two warring sides ashore, especially as the threat of chemical warfare lingers ever so near. We would not want any polarizing international incident to occur, especially in the vein of Kuala Lumpur 2017.
However, if successful, peace talks would help raise Jakarta’s standing. In most cases, the pros outweigh the cons, and the November summit would make for a brilliant bookend if the conflict persists well into the year.
It would also make up for any foreign policy shortcomings that the current administration might have had in the past.
