Indonesia eyes strategic Middle East pivot to diversify from China and US

With a focus on trade, infrastructure and defence, Indonesia aims to leverage the region’s substantial wealth and cultural ties

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Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto gestures at the launch of a new system for directly transferring allowances to regional public school teachers’ bank accounts in Jakarta on March 13. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:07pm, 14 Mar 2025Updated: 9:45pm, 14 Mar 2025

The Middle East could prove a ripe ground for Indonesia to diversify from traditional partners such as China and the United States, according to analysts who have pointed to Jakarta’s non-aligned approach to foreign policy.

Last week, Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono met Qatar Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani during an official visit to Doha, where both sides agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation.

Qatar also signed a Memorandum of Understanding to finance a major housing project in Indonesia, supporting President Prabowo Subianto’s pledge to triple the country’s housing target to 3 million units this year.

In February, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, Prabowo’s brother and head of the new Housing Task Force overseeing the programme, revealed that Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund had contemplated a similar commitment.

This followed Abu Dhabi’s January announcement of a planned investment of around US$2 billion into Indonesia’s state-owned companies, aimed at developing sectors such as toll roads and solar energy.

There are many opportunities for Indonesia to partner with Middle Eastern countries, [many of which] have a lot of money to invest

Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat, political analyst

These investments aligned with Indonesia’s pattern of cooperation with the Middle East, which had largely revolved around trade and infrastructure development, said Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat from the Centre of Economic and Law Studies (Celios) think tank in Jakarta.