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What to look for in Prabowo’s first envoy appointments
Through the appointment of ambassadors, we can expect to get a signal of how a president intends to drive foreign policy.
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President Prabowo Subianto (right) and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka (second right) take turns congratulating the new ambassadors for Indonesian diplomatic missions following an appointment ceremony at the State Palace in Jakarta on March 24, 2025. (Antara/Galih Pradipta)
P
resident Prabowo Subianto inaugurated a group of Indonesian ambassadors on Monday, marking the first ambassadorial appointments of his presidency, Prabowo officially inaugurated a total of 31 Indonesian ambassadors to foreign countries.
Prabowo’s appointment of ambassadors is highly anticipated specifically because of his hands-on approach to foreign policy and several foreign visits in the first few months of his term that sparked debate.
In November, Prabowo’s trip to China resulted in a surprising paragraph on an agreed joint development in the overlapping claims between Indonesia and China in the South China Sea.
During his visit to the United States, Prabowo held a private meeting with Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) director William J. Burns without details or results disclosed. Just this January, Indonesia officially became a full member of BRICS.
With these developments happening against the backdrop of geopolitical risks, the appointment of Indonesian ambassadors became even more crucial.
Ambassadors are at the forefront of Indonesia’s diplomacy, navigating international politics and translating Jakarta’s views and policies on international relations. In other words, they are the extension of the President’s hands, the ones who will have to carry out the everyday diplomacy of Prabowo’s touch on foreign policy.
Through the appointment of ambassadors, we can expect to get a signal of how a president intends to drive foreign policy.
