During the course of their sixty year-old bilateral relationship, Indonesia and China have gone through many ups and downs. A great part of the formative years of this relationship was marred by mutual apathy, if not distrust.
President Obama’s visit to Indonesia is expected to excise the sense of drift in the relationship that had crept in the post-Suharto phase of transition.
Indonesia, which has been taking significant measures to curb terrorism, scored another success with the arrest of Abu Bakar Ba'asyir aka ABB, suspected of having funded and ideologically motivated Al Qaeda Aceh, in early August 2010. The arrest is just one of the steps in a long, consistent and protracted fight to maintain Indonesia’s secular, democratic and republican credentials.
Many Papuans prefer to internationalise their plight and seek a third party to settle the issue as they do not trust the Jakarta elites and Indonesians in general.
This commentary attempts to answer the question as to why the flow of jihadis is unending despite tough measures being undertaken by Jakarta, on its own or in collaboration with its regional and international partners.
Indonesia is trying to gain the leadership position in Southeast Asia through constructive and cooperative gestures and balanced bargaining between major powers.
Indonesia-US Relations in the context of President Obama’s visit
President Obama’s visit to Indonesia is expected to excise the sense of drift in the relationship that had crept in the post-Suharto phase of transition.