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How middle powers can preserve international order
Indonesia, with its long history of ethnic conflicts in Aceh and Poso, among others, has insight into how to tackle protracted internal clashes about identity and resource-related tensions.
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Protective gear: A trishaw driver and his passenger use umbrellas to stay dry while traveling through rain on Aug. 27, 2023 in Yangon, Myanmar. (AFP/Sai Aung Main)
W
hile Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was visiting South Africa for the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) Summit at the end of August 2023, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani was in Singapore to deliver his speech at the inaugural Raffles Lecture held by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). In his speech, the PM shared tools and strategies on how countries can become successful actors on the global stage, lessons that could be useful for Indonesia.
To deal with the increasing rivalry between the United States and China, Qatar's prime minister shared three strategies, namely alliance building and multilateralism, peace facilitation and investment to support economic growth. Some of these resonate with Mohammad Hatta’s free and active foreign policy doctrine.
Alliance building may not fit with Indonesia’s non-aligned principle, but multilateralism bodes well with Indonesia’s focus on the United Nations on the global level and ASEAN on the regional level. The ASEAN principles of peaceful coexistence and friendly cooperation stated in the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation that was endorsed in 1976 by founding members, including Indonesia, amid the heat of the first Cold War, has been adopted by many countries including Qatar, which became a signatory last year.
As ASEAN chair, Indonesia must be a leader in resolving strategic issues, including territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Unfortunately, progress has been slow as Indonesia is, in principle, unwilling to put any country on the spot. Rather than moving quickly and risk damaging relations, Indonesia prefers to consider its actions carefully in order to make a lasting impact.
Although such a move comes with consequences, the lack of progress in a code of conduct in the South China Sea has led China to significantly expand its operational authority over numerous land features in disputed areas.
Indonesia’s careful deliberation has also raised speculation about whether it would join BRICS as its next multilateral move, with President Jokowi traveling to the BRICS Summit but without a public announcement about the country’s intentions. However, the President issued a statement at the summit calling for developing countries to reject trade discrimination and strive for equal and inclusive cooperation.
Indonesia has attempted to apply peace facilitation to the Myanmar conflict by pushing for the ASEAN Special Summit on Myanmar in April 2021, which resulted in the Five-Point Consensus. The consensus implementation has proved challenging as the crisis continues, claiming thousands of lives and displacing millions, without an end in sight.
