Analysts have said that Jakarta’s decision to “level up” support for Southeast Asian claimants does not indicate a “nascent alliance” with Washington, but that the country’s recent joint statement with the United States expressing concern over China’s claims in the South China Sea indicates it sees Beijing as a security threat.
While meeting last Thursday in Washington, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto discussed plans to increase defense capabilities, specifically in the areas of “fighter aircraft upgrades, new multi-role fighter aircraft, and additional fixed and rotary wing transport aircraft,” as reported by the Pentagon.
Additionally, the two nations said that Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea were “inconsistent with international law as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos)”.
University of Indonesia international law professor Aristyo Rizka Darmawan saw the remark as signaling a departure from Indonesia’s traditional policy of neutrality.
Darmawan stated, “As a non-claimant, Indonesia has often avoided directly confronting China,” and that it was “a significant gesture” for Indonesia to name China in a joint statement with the US.
Dermawan said Jakarta’s statement encouraging Beijing to comply with international law was “important and necessary” in view of recent naval encounters between the Philippine and China Coast Guard in the South China Sea.
“It is important for other Asean states to stand together in condemning China’s assertive action,” Darmawan added, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.