BEIJING/JAKARTA – China is an important friend and partner, said Indonesia President Prabowo Subianto as he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Nov 9, in his first overseas stop since he was sworn in on Oct 20.
That Beijing was Mr Prabowo’s first stop was no surprise, observers noted, as he has signalled a keen interest in strengthening relations with China, Indonesia’s largest trading partner and one of its most important foreign investors.
Indonesia’s approach to foreign policy has long been to maintain its autonomy and avoid involvement in power rivalries, and the trip underscores its strategic balancing act between the United States and China, they said.
From China, Mr Prabowo will fly to the US at the invitation of US President Joe Biden, with a possible meeting with President-elect Donald Trump on the cards. From there, he will continue to Peru for the APEC summit, Brazil for the G-20 summit, and then the UK.
Mr Prabowo, who won the presidency in February, has been working to make the world’s fourth-most populous nation more active on the international stage. While president-elect, he visited 21 countries.
The three-day China state visit, which ends on Nov 10, is Mr Prabowo’s second trip to Beijing in 2024, following a visit in April.
More than US$10 billion (S$13.3 billion) worth of business contracts between Chinese and Indonesian companies will be signed on Nov 10, Mr Prabowo said during his meeting with Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang on Nov 9, livestreamed by the Indonesia Presidential Secretariat’s press bureau.
“I think this shows the close collaboration and increased participation and integration of Chinese corporations with Indonesian corporations to benefit both our countries,” Mr Prabowo said.
Trade between both countries has exceeded US$100 billion annually. China has also been among the top three foreign investors in South-east Asia’s biggest economy for eight consecutive years, with US$7.4 billion invested last year.
Among China’s flagship investment projects in Indonesia in the past decade was the US$7.3 billion Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail, Whoosh, the first HSR in South-east Asia.
During the meeting with Mr Li, Mr Prabowo expressed Indonesia’s interest in learning from China’s experience in eradicating poverty, noting that his government will step up efforts to eradicate poverty in Indonesia.
Executive director of Jakarta-based think tank Centre of Economic and Law Studies, Mr Bhima Yudhistira, said by going to Beijing first, Mr Prabowo showed he is keen to continue economic cooperation with China as it did under his predecessor, Mr Joko Widodo.
“China plays a key role which Mr Prabowo wants to retain, especially as he seeks to realise his ambitious projects on food and energy security,” he said. “China is his first stop as he aims to secure investments from China.”
Assistant Professor Dylan Loh from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, who specialises in Chinese foreign policy, said Mr Prabowo’s visit shows that he sees closer ties to China as helping him to achieve both domestic development goals and foreign policy aims of raising Jakarta’s profile.
“I think China will very much welcome that, given that Indonesia has traditionally been seen as the “leader” of South-east Asia,” said Prof Loh.
At a regular briefing on Nov 5, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said: “China is ready to work with Indonesia to take this visit as an opportunity to consolidate high-level political mutual trust.”
