{"id":19400,"date":"2015-03-30T14:30:24","date_gmt":"2015-03-30T03:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=19400"},"modified":"2015-07-21T18:23:42","modified_gmt":"2015-07-21T08:23:42","slug":"jokowis-trip-to-tokyo-and-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/jokowis-trip-to-tokyo-and-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Jokowi\u2019s trip to Tokyo and Beijing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Indonesia\u2019s<\/a><\/p>\n

Last week, Indonesia\u2019s President Joko Widodo embarked on a weeklong Northeast Asian tour beginning with Tokyo on Monday and then Beijing on Wednesday. Besides pressing the flesh and riding a bullet train, Jokowi\u2019s aims were to attract greater investment in Indonesia and strengthen political ties. Among the pledges and promises, let\u2019s see what major stuff Jokowi took home.<\/p>\n

Strategic partnership<\/strong><\/p>\n

In Tokyo, Jokowi received positive statements from Prime Minister Abe that both countries would \u2018enhance\u2019 their strategic partnership and build security cooperation via 2+2 meetings. They signed a memorandum on further bilateral defence cooperation that included<\/a> increased military training\u2014beyond the existing exchange of military students\u2014and access to military technology to help Japan gain foothold in Indonesian defence industry given the competitiveness of South Korean firms in the region.<\/p>\n

In Beijing, Jokowi and Xi Jinping agreed<\/a> to sign a five-year plan of action to build on the comprehensive strategic partnership, as well as an MoU on cooperation in preventing and combatting transnational crime. Both sides agreed to further expand defence cooperation in the areas of joint exercises and training, and to further establish army to army and air force to air force talks, alongside the existing navy dialogue. Interestingly, given Indonesian sensitivities about intrusions into its maritime domain, the joint statement<\/a> included the following reference:<\/p>\n

The Indonesian side is ready to continue providing facilitation for Chinese vessels to carry out telemetry, tracking and control missions in Indonesian waters in accordance with the Indonesian national laws and bilateral agreements.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Maritime cooperation<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Jokowi administration\u2019s policy centrepiece is to transform Indonesia into a \u2018global maritime nexus\u2019. No surprises then that maritime cooperation featured heavily in the Japan\u2013Indonesia joint statement<\/a>, with both Jokowi and Abe affirming the importance of \u2018free, open and stable seas\u2019 for peace, prosperity and security. The main takeaway was the agreement to launch a Japan\u2013Indonesia Maritime Forum as soon as possible to further strengthen and accelerate maritime cooperation, including maritime safety and security, as well as the promotion of maritime industries. Japan will also enhance the competence of Indonesia’s coast guard and develop infrastructure. But exact details are still lacking, as The Diplomat<\/em>\u2019s Prashanth Parameswaran notes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Although the China\u2013Indonesia statement appeared lighter on maritime matters, it was no less significant. For one, it pledged cooperation in a number of maritime-related areas as part of developing a maritime partnership. Xi Jinping also promised<\/a> to support investment in Indonesia\u2019s maritime infrastructure as well, via the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Silk Road Fund. Both sides also signed a MoU on maritime search and rescue.<\/p>\n

Investment<\/strong><\/p>\n

Foreign investment will play a key role in realising many of the President\u2019s plans, such as boosting maritime infrastructure. Jokowi\u2019s APEC speech<\/a> in November had a clear message: \u2018we are waiting for you to invest in Indonesia\u2019.<\/p>\n

In Tokyo, Jokowi secured Abe\u2019s support for an economic program called \u2018Promosi\u2019 (Indonesian for \u2018promotion\u2019), designed to boost Japanese investment in the country, particularly in<\/a> energy, transport and infrastructure. Abe also promised<\/a> 140 billion yen (A$1.5 billion) in loans for railway projects, including Indonesia\u2019s rapid transit system currently under construction. Jokowi was treated to a bullet train ride as part of the Japanese sales pitch for the technology, and a feasibility study is already underway.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Jokowi secured similar deals and affirmations in Beijing, including an MoU on cooperating on a high speed rail project linking the capital and Bandung, another major Indonesian city, as well as energy and infrastructure cooperation including toll roads throughout the archipelago<\/a>, dams and deep-sea ports.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s PM Li Keqiang labelled<\/a> economic cooperation between the two nations as \u2018win-win cooperation\u2019, encouraging Chinese companies to consider Indonesia as an investment destination.<\/p>\n

A win for Jokowi?<\/strong><\/p>\n

In contrast with his predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Jokowi\u2019s foreign policy is more pragmatic and economically focussed. Jokowi has done well to leverage the maritime domain for Indonesia to build better investment and security ties with Japan and China. The statements and agreements signed with \u00a0both Northeast Asian partners will help boost trade and investment with Southeast Asia\u2019s largest economy. As many of Jokowi\u2019s ambitions for his country are contingent on maintaining economic growth and investment, it remains to be seen what role Japanese and Chinese money can play. Suffice to say, however, every little bit counts (according<\/a> to the World Bank, FDI in Indonesia in 2013 was worth US$23 billion).<\/p>\n

With Japan and China both vying for influence in Southeast Asia, the trip had gains for both. While Indonesia mightn\u2019t be a claimant in maritime disputes with China, its position on maintaining stability in the maritime domain and respecting international law align with Japan\u2019s interests. From Japan\u2019s perspective, that\u2019s a win.<\/p>\n

Indonesia has also been careful not to antagonise China. Although ahead of his Tokyo trip Jokowi declared that China\u2019s nine-dash line had no basis in international law, he dodged controversy by clarifying his position and reiterating Jakarta\u2019s desire to be an \u2018honest broker\u2019 in maritime disputes.<\/p>\n

This trip saw Jokowi\u2019s first bilateral visits outside ASEAN, underlining the increasingly important role China and Japan will \u00a0play in Indonesia\u2019s and Southeast Asia\u2019s future. Against a backdrop of increased Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea and tensions between China and Japan, harnessing both countries (or even playing them off against one another) will be a neat trick\u2014if Jokowi pulls it off.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week, Indonesia\u2019s President Joko Widodo embarked on a weeklong Northeast Asian tour beginning with Tokyo on Monday and then Beijing on Wednesday. Besides pressing the flesh and riding a bullet train, Jokowi\u2019s aims were …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":19401,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1056,52,8,1072,135,377,71,277],"class_list":["post-19400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-bilateral-relations","tag-china","tag-indonesia","tag-investment","tag-japan","tag-joko-widodo","tag-maritime-security","tag-strategic-partnership"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nJokowi\u2019s trip to Tokyo and Beijing | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/jokowis-trip-to-tokyo-and-china\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jokowi\u2019s trip to Tokyo and Beijing | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Last week, Indonesia\u2019s President Joko Widodo embarked on a weeklong Northeast Asian tour beginning with Tokyo on Monday and then Beijing on Wednesday. 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