July 18, 2024
JAKARTA – President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Monday met with visiting Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape to emphasize the importance of cooperation in security and development, amid simmering tensions in the region and Jakarta’s increased emphasis on maintaining ties with its Pacific island neighbors.
Viewing the country as Indonesia’s “strategic partner”, Jakarta hopes that the PNG will aid its efforts in collaborating with Pacific island regional groups such as the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) and Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), Jokowi said after his bilateral meeting with Marape.
Attending the third Indonesia-PNG Leaders Dialogue, Marape’s visit to the Bogor Palace in West Java heralded three memorandums of understanding (MoUs) on border movement, border transportation and education, as well as a renewed MoU on cooperation in the health sector.
“I’m delighted by PM Marape’s visit to Indonesia, which displays the ever-tightening brotherhood between Indonesia and the PNG,” said Jokowi.
“Indonesia is committed to supporting the development of the PNG and other Pacific island countries. […] We appreciate and continue to count on the PNG’s support in elevating our cooperation with the Pacific.”
Among the top topics of discussion were cooperation in defense, energy and trade, with Jokowi also emphasizing the need to advance the Indonesia-PNG preferential trade agreement.
Marape’s visit also welcomed a fresh supply of Indonesian electricity through a collaboration between their state-owned electricity companies, Indonesia’s PLN and PNG Power, bringing power to the PNG border village of Wutung.
In recent years, Indonesia has put in diplomatic efforts to intensify its engagement with Pacific island nations, such as through financially investing in their development projects.
Experts have said Jakarta has much to benefit from good relations with its Oceanian neighbors given its geographical and political importance, particularly amid rivalry between the United States and China in the Indo-Pacific region.
Additionally, experts have said the relationship between Pacific island nations and the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM) has on various occasions proved to be a diplomatic liability for Indonesia, with numerous international actors demanding accountability in response to reports of human rights abuses inflicted by Indonesian authorities.
After his Bogor stopover, Marape went to Jakarta to visit defense minister and president-elect Prabowo Subianto at his office in Jakarta, where the two discussed future cooperation.
“There is a lot that we can continue together,” Prabowo said. “We want to maintain good ties, and [the PNG] has a similar philosophy to that of Indonesia. They want to respect all countries and all powers. We do not wish to join any blocs.”
Earlier this year, Indonesia and PNG implemented a historic Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) that took over a decade to negotiate, to strengthen military ties between the two countries, including through the exchange of personnel for training, logistical support and intelligence cooperation.