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View all search resultsSigning extradition, defense and FIR treaties with Singapore
The deal with Singapore can be another diplomatic scoop for the President to strengthen his credentials, especially now that Indonesia assumes the Group of 20 presidency, as he shows how to resolve complicated disputes amicably.
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I
n an afternoon meeting after Christmas, a senior government official told me that Indonesia and Singapore would soon sign three historic deals after lengthy negotiations on the politically sensitive matters: the Flight Information Region (FIR), the defense cooperation and the extradition treaty. The FIR agreement is the new element, as the two other agreements were first agreed upon by the two countries in 2007.
Later this month, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is expected to host Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for their annual retreat, most likely in Batam, Riau Islands. This can be another diplomatic scoop for the President to strengthen his credentials, especially now that Indonesia assumes the Group of 20 presidency, as he shows how to resolve complicated disputes amicably.
The Omicron variant hopefully will not spoil the scheduled summit, during which the two leaders will witness the signing of four documents, including a legal umbrella for the agreements, by four ministers from each country.
As a legal umbrella, Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan and his Singapore counterpart Theo Chee Hean will sign a separate document to cover the three agreements. Hean reportedly insisted that the Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) should stay as it was when he signed it as Singapore’s defense minister in 2007.
The DCA will be signed by Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and his Singaporean counterpart Ng Eng Hen. For me, Prabowo’s readiness is surprising, because the agreement is politically unpopular and it could backfire on him if he runs for president in 2024. But he should have calculated the consequences. After all, his status as Gerindra Party chairman will be crucial in pushing the House of Representatives to ratify the agreement. During the Yudhoyono administration the House refused to ratify the DCA.
The Extradition Treaty will be signed by Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly, who is a senior Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) member. As the PDI-P and Gerindra are among the largest factions in the House, their role will be instrumental in making the legislative body accept the deal.
Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi and his Singaporean counterpart S. Iswaran will be in charge of the FIR affairs. Under the new scheme, Singapore will only be able to reach up to 90 nautical miles of Indonesia’s airspace, a bit further from Batam until around Pekanbaru.
