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Indonesia waits on ‘concrete’ cooperation with US in Indo-Pacific
Some of Indonesia's biggest expected gains from the United States remained elusive, as Jakarta sought assurances that the US would deliver on a regional comprehensive economic cooperation framework.
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivers remarks on the Biden administration's Indo-Pacific strategy at the University of Indonesia in Depok, West Java on Dec. 14. (AFP/Olivier Douliery)
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ndonesia has expressed hope for concrete Indo-Pacific cooperation with the United States, whose top diplomat was in Jakarta as part of a charm offensive in Southeast Asia, where China has a sustained presence.
After paying a courtesy call on President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo after touching down in Jakarta on Monday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met his Indonesian counterpart Retno LP Marsudi for their second bilateral meeting on Tuesday, emphasizing his country’s “strong commitment” to the strategic partnership with Indonesia.
The two sides agreed to establish a regular 2+2 senior officials dialogue on foreign affairs and defense and signed a new deal on education cooperation, as well as renewing existing deals on maritime cooperation and the US Peace Corps program in Indonesia.
However, the biggest expected gains remained elusive, as Jakarta sought assurances from Washington that it would deliver on a much-awaited comprehensive economic cooperation framework for the wider Indo-Pacific region.
As Southeast Asia’s largest economy that is strategically situated in the crux of the Indian and Pacific oceans, Indonesia has been pushing to promote an open and inclusive regional order in the Indo-Pacific, unlike which Washington had been using to justify efforts to contain China in their overarching superpower rivalry.
With the 2019 adoption of the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, Jakarta has called for more cooperation on issues most salient to countries from the region, including maritime cooperation and connectivity.
After two years, Minister Retno said it was time for ASEAN to tackle priority issues with its external partners including the US, while stressing that mutually beneficial and concrete cooperation would contribute to the attainment of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
