Indonesia is bulking up its defence regardless. In January, when Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba visited Jakarta, it was announced that Japan would give Indonesia two high-speed patrol boats and boost regional maritime security cooperation.
In 2023, the Indonesian military was the only one from ASEAN that participated in a two-week training exercise between Australia and the US. Experts have pointed out that these war games, called Talisman Sabre, are designed with China in mind.
It is a balancing act, however, for Indonesia: Jakarta and Beijing have plans for joint military exercises this year.
Indonesia sees the two sides of the coin, according to Mari. “We do see China as an important market, also an important source of goods, components, investments and tourists, so there’s the positive side,” she said.
On the downside, there are, among other things, labour-related issues involving Chinese workers. “In the 70s, we had kind of similar issues when there was a lot of Japanese investment,” she said. “Both sides need to … accept each other’s differences.”
As for the perceived potential military threat and the Natunas issue, she hopes economic pragmatism will prevail. “Can we look at whether we can develop this jointly?” she said. “That’s a more pragmatic view.”
Watch the series China And The Global South here: Malaysia and Indonesia. Segments on Laos and Vietnam will be available from tomorrow, at 9pm, on CNA Insider’s YouTube channel.
