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As president, Prabowo will be hands-on in managing foreign policy
Prabowo has repeatedly said as president he will stick to the principles of the free and active foreign policy, by maintaining good relations with all major global actors, such as the US and China.
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Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto (left) walks with United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin (right) during the former's visit to Pentagon in Virginia, the United States, on Aug. 24, 2023. (-/Instagram/@prabowo)
D
iplomats at the Foreign Ministry should readjust themselves to a much different diplomacy direction under Prabowo Subianto, if as appears likely he takes office as president in October. Forget the current economics-heavy diplomacy and get ready to work for a more globalized Indonesia.
The first step Prabowo will take is of course appointing his foreign minister to replace Retno LP Marsudi, who has held the post for two terms. Prabowo will also look for new envoys in key countries, such as the United States, China, Japan and Australia, along with permanent representatives at the United Nations in New York and Geneva.
However, the replacement of Indonesian ambassadors will not happen immediately after Prabowo’s inauguration. Indonesia is different from the US, where ambassadors who are non-career diplomats resign immediately upon the new president taking office.
But hopefully, Prabowo will not pick too many non-career diplomats, let alone military officers, for the ambassadorial posts.
Prabowo’s ascendancy comes as Indonesia begins to play a more active role in global affairs. The Jakarta Post, in its Feb. 26, 2024 article quoted a recent Global Diplomatic Index study, which found that Indonesia remains a leading diplomatic force with the most extensive network in Southeast Asia.
The study, conducted by Sydney-based Lowy Institute, ranked 66 countries around the world, breaking them down into the categories of the Asia region, the Group of 20 (G20) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Indonesia ranked sixth in the Asia region. It possesses the most extensive global diplomatic network of any Southeast Asian country, operating 130 diplomatic missions across 95 countries.
