Many in the 1940s and till the 1950s felt that India and Indonesia would be the closest of partners, given New Delhi’s role in Indonesia’s quest for freedom and the friendship between their leaders. But history took a different turn and, while ties did not turn adversarial, the partnership never realised its true potential - notwithstanding geographical proximity, civilisational bonds and the promise of partnership that can create a multipolar Asia.     

It is rarely appreciated that Indonesia is India’s closest maritime neighbour, divided by 100 miles and New Delhi’s Indo-Pacific outreach to the East hinges on Indonesia, a link country between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Fiercely non-aligned, Indonesia practices strategic autonomy similar to India’s approach. 

Both are key pillars of the Global South and Indonesia’s entry into BRICS has given yet another platform to New Delhi and Jakarta to fulfil the aspirations of the Global South. The challenges they face are also similar and therefore sharing of best practices and expertise would give momentum to the partnership. 

The outcomes from Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Jakarta and Yogyakarta are a result of the seeds sown by President Joko Widodo and nurtured by current President Prabowo Subianto. Prabowo, as he is commonly known, has been taking genuine interest in scaling up ties with India ever since he was the Defence Minister. The Indonesian President has publicly declared his interest in partnering with India to address the challenges his nation faces and feels India has the answer to some of Indonesia’s pressing requirements. For India, Indonesia, as the biggest country in South East Asia that hedges between powers, is the ideal partner in Asia to build on shared heritage. 

Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

The visit of Prime Minister Modi marked an important milestone reflecting the shared commitment of the two leaders to achieve a substantial upwards trajectory in the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The icing on the cake was deals on BrahMos missiles, Air-to-Air Missile Cooperation Agreement and the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Maritime Safety and Security Cooperation. 

It was agreed to further strengthen and enhance engagements in both traditional and emerging areas of defence cooperation, including regular defence dialogue, joint exercises, staff talks, joint research, and co-production of new defence technologies, port calls, peacekeeping activities, information sharing, hydrography, capacity building, cadet training and exchanges, and defence industrial cooperation.

The two nations identified collaboration in defence industry and technology as one of the priority areas of cooperation and agreed to expand mutually beneficial collaboration between defence industries for joint production of equipment, technology transfer, technical assistance, and capacity building, sourcing of defence equipment, including cooperation in ship-building, establishment of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities for similar defence platforms, exploring establishment of defence R&D, and strengthening defence supply chain ecosystem.

Delhi and Jakarta, given their expertise as maritime powers, also decided to widen maritime cooperation, including in the field of maritime domain awareness (MDA), maritime connectivity, coastal surveillance, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), pollution control, and search and rescue (SAR) based on mutual interest and priorities of the two countries, which also contributes to delivering peace, security, and prosperity in the region and greater stability in the wider Indo-Pacific region. 

The joint development of Indonesia’s Sabang port is part of this endeavour. It was recognised that such a partnership — spanning cruise and marine-tourism facilities, maritime industries (ship-repair and shipbuilding), and shore-based services supporting offshore energy activities in the Andaman Sea — would foster institutional, physical, digital and flow of people and commodities between Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India and Provinces in Sumatra Island that contribute to generating investment, employment, transfer of technology, and shared regional prosperity. 

What missed headlines is the decision to enhance cooperation in preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism, including through efforts to counter terrorist financing, promote internationally agreed anti-money laundering and countering financing of terrorism, prevent the misuse of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes, and address terrorist recruitment, including online recruitment and radicalisation through digital platforms, and strengthen cooperation on countering radicalisation and prevention of violent extremism (PVE) programs. 

Desirous of enhancing the intensity of strategic engagement between the two countries and acknowledging the importance of holding high-level exchanges, both leaders have now agreed to hold regular Summit Meetings, including on the margins of multilateral events. Further India-Indonesia Parliamentary Friendship Groups have been created in respective Parliaments to enhance Parliamentary exchanges between the two democracies.

Tapping Potential Of Economic Partnership 

Economic and trade cooperation remains a key pillar of the dynamic India-Indonesia ties. There exist economic and developmental synergies between India's vision of ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’ and ‘Indonesia Emas 2045’, and the role of broader and deeper economic integration between the two countries for unlocking greater economic opportunities. 

Towards this, Prime Minister Modi and President Prabowo expressed the desire for a timely conclusion of the ASEAN India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) review for a balanced, mutually beneficial, and facilitative trade environment, followed by deeper bilateral trade engagement to enhance bilateral trade.

It was decided to strengthen collaboration in critical minerals and rare earths with a focus on building diversified and resilient supply chains essential for the growth of domestic manufacturing industries towards reducing vulnerabilities and strengthening economic security. Two agreements were concluded in this sector. 

India’s support to boosting Indonesia’s Digital Public Infrastructure has been a success story over the last three years. The launch of the Indonesia Open Network (ION), based on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) architecture in India, to increase the participation of Indonesian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the digital economy through digital networks is commendable. 

Given that its size is like India, FinTech can improve the lifestyle of common Indonesians. There has been progress towards the implementation of the Cross-Border QR Payment Linkage between India and Indonesia, as agreed between the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Bank Indonesia. This initiative marks an important milestone in strengthening bilateral payment connectivity between Indonesia and India. The linkage will enhance transaction efficiency, strengthen financial resilience, and promote inclusive economic growth, particularly by supporting MSMEs, tourism, and students.

The real work begins now: to translate the actions and outcomes of the visit and the chemistry between the two leaders into action that overcomes the bureaucratic inertia and inhibitions of the past. 

New Delhi and Jakarta have an opportunity to seize the moment and build a coalition that would contribute to a multipolar Asia and consolidate the Global South.