Prabowo's China trip to boost regional stability

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto's state visit to China is expected to promote stability in the Southeast Asian region, while also highlighting the country's long-held principle of independent and active foreign policy, analysts said.

Prabowo was in Beijing from Nov 8 to 10 where he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Xi noted that Prabowo visited China on his first overseas trip right after he was elected in March and chose China as the first country to visit after taking office, which speaks volumes about the great importance he attaches to developing relations with China and demonstrates the high level and strategic nature of China-Indonesia relations.

Prabowo said the relationship is "getting stronger and stronger", adding that China is "a strategic economic partner of Indonesia, a top investor in Indonesia", and "we thank you very much for your support", The Jakarta Post reported.

Tauhid Ahmad, executive director of the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance in Jakarta, said Indonesia and China need to ensure that bilateral relations remain strong even amid geopolitical uncertainties.

Tauhid noted that Prabowo's predecessor, former president Joko Widodo, made significant steps in enhancing Indonesia-China relations by pushing the building of a China-Indonesia community with a shared future to a higher and more concrete level.

Widodo visited China eight times during his 10 years as president.

"Although Indonesia and China have different views on certain issues, the two countries hold their commitment for ongoing bilateral cooperation," Tauhid said.

Aleksius Jemadu, an international relations analyst from Pelita Harapan University in West Java, said Prabowo's visit to China is important for both Indonesia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Jemadu said Prabowo's visit to China will keep the momentum of bilateral cooperation and ensure stability in Southeast Asia.

He said Prabowo needs more foreign investment to fund his priority projects like food security, renewable energy, infrastructure development and the building of the new capital Nusantara in East Kalimantan.

"To achieve all these, cooperation with Beijing becomes indispensable," Jemadu said.

Largest trading partner

China is Indonesia's largest trading partner, one of its biggest export markets, and a major source of tourist revenues and foreign direct investment. According to data from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, bilateral trade between China and Indonesia reached $92.79 billion between January and August 2024, a 1.5 percent increase year-on-year.

Most Chinese FDI has gone into building key infrastructure, including the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway — ASEAN's first bullet train and a key project under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

In October 2023, Xi and Widodo jointly inaugurated the railway, which has since become a hallmark of high-quality bilateral cooperation.

According to PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, a joint venture between Chinese and Indonesian enterprises that operates the HSR, the railway has transported over 5.79 million passengers in its first year, including 300,000 international travelers from 159 countries.

During his visit to Beijing, Prabowo said Indonesia adheres to an independent and nonaligned foreign policy, will not join any military alliance or exclusive bloc against a third party, and is keen to enhance coordination with China in multilateral frameworks like the Group of 20.

Prabowo and Xi also witnessed the signing of several bilateral agreements on water conservation, marine management and mining.

The Indonesian president left for the United States on Nov 10 to continue his 15-day world tour, which includes attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, meeting in Peru and the G20 Summit in Brazil.

Fahmy Radhi, an energy economist at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, said he hopes China will help advance Indonesia's industrialization, noting Chinese companies' heavy presence in mineral processing and manufacturing.

He said the Chinese and Indonesian governments can promote the use of local materials in the production of Chinese electric vehicles in Indonesia.

Xinhua contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at prime@chinadailyapac.com.

Leonardus Jegho is a freelance journalist for China Daily.