November 13, 2024
JAKARTA – President Prabowo Subianto posted a video of his phone call with Donald Trump, during a working visit to Washington, DC, saying that he was willing to travel to Florida to meet the president-elect in person amid an ongoing effort to solidify his American rapport.
It was posted on Prabowo’s social media account just one day before his scheduled meeting with outgoing US President Joe Biden on Tuesday Washington time. The phone call saw Trump compliment the former Army general as a “very respected person”, also assuring him that he could “call anytime [he] wants”.
“I would like to congratulate you on your election as president of the United States of America,” Prabowo told Trump, as seen in the video Prabowo posted on his social media account.
“Wherever you are I’m willing to fly to congratulate you personally, sir.”
“That’s so nice,” Trump replied. “Great job you’re doing in Indonesia. Proud of you, and your English is so good.”
Arriving at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland outside Washington on Monday, just days after Trump’s presidential victory, Prabowo, who was on stop two of a five-legged inaugural overseas tour, was set to meet with an array of Washington’s higher-ups to discuss future US-Indonesia relations amid persisting global tensions.
While Prabowo’s busy foreign itinerary has been widely perceived as an intentional display of his attempt to balance Indonesia’s relations with polarized powers, analysts suggested that his Washington stop was especially worth monitoring, given the previous administration’s lukewarm ties with the US and mounting hopes for a more balanced approach in Jakarta.
Now, in light of the Nov. 5 election results, another dynamic has been introduced to Prabowo’s mission to reiterate Indonesia’s commitment to the US, he must consider Washington’s incoming Republican leadership.
Experts and diplomats who experienced Trump’s first administration from 2017 to 2021 have previously suggested that the business tycoon much preferred working with familiar leaders with connections to his inner circle, emphasizing that good personal relationships were key to keeping up bilateral ties and progressing negotiations.
Read also: Prabowo touches down in US with opportunities, challenges ahead
Analysts suggested that while Prabowo’s scheduled meeting with outgoing President Biden would be a highlight event to watch out for, the new Indonesian leader’s attempts to cozy up to Trump and his network could be telling with regard to future ties between Washington and Jakarta.
“Of course the relationship between countries should take more importance than personal relationships,” Yose Rizal Damuri, executive director of Jakarta-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
“But Trump’s victory may indeed cast a completely different background to the US compared with Biden, with many policy changes. All this does not elude Prabowo.”
With Biden, Prabowo has been slated to discuss a range of issues including green energy transition, democracy, regional peace and stability, an earlier statement from the White House said.
To make good
Prabowo’s task of rapport-building appears not to be limited to political stakeholders only, with the President also starting his second day in the US with a closed-door meeting with the US-Indonesia Society (USINDO).
The meeting in downtown Washington saw Prabowo encouraging US companies not to shy away from channeling their funds to Indonesia and “stay involved in our development plans”, amid lackluster confidence among US businesses in investing in the country.
A dozen companies joined the meeting, such as Freeport McMoRan, ExxonMobil and Chevron.
Previously, US businesses have expressed their hopes for better headwinds in Prabowo’s Indonesia, admitting that they had troubles with transparency, human resources and policymaking under the previous administration.
In his statement to the media after the event, Prabowo said the meeting was only a “general talk” during which no business deals were inked.
“America is very involved with the Indonesian economy, in the development of Indonesia,” Prabowo said. “[Some companies] have been in Indonesia for a long time, and they continue to believe in Indonesia [and] its economy.”
Read also: President Prabowo calls Trump ahead of Biden meeting
Investment and Downstream Minister Rosan Roeslani, who attended the meeting, told reporters that several of Prabowo’s economic priorities were topics of conversation, including the food and energy self-sufficiency agenda, downstream development and the free nutritious meal program.
The businesses responded “very positively”, Rosan said.
Empty Washington post
While much hope has been placed on Prabowo securing better ties between the US and Indonesia, especially in light of Jakarta’s non-aligned stance amid the Beijing-Washington rivalry, some experts say that building a strong US network will require an efficient ambassador in its capital.
This position has been vacant for over a year after former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo repositioned then-ambassador Rosan as a deputy minister.
There are still some months left until a new era in US-Indonesia relationships can take form, analysts say, and until then, it is essential that Jakarta optimize its Washington negotiation network lest it risk being perceived as an insincere partner.
“If we are serious about building rapport, we must first and foremost appoint an ambassador to Washington. This is incredibly critical,” Yose of the CSIS said. “It will be futile to wish for a good relationship with the US without a top envoy. It’s a symbolic error, and takes away from genuine intentions.”