Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands with Indonesia's President Joko Widodo at the Kremlin in Moscow on June 30, 2022. - AFP
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): A highly respected Indonesian veteran diplomat concluded that President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo had failed his peace mission in Moscow last week.
The influential and popular diplomat had given the President a 10-point recommendation just before the latter left for Kyiv and Moscow.
On the surface, the President's shuttle diplomacy did not offer a breakthrough, let alone progress, in the efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war because the problem is too complicated to overcome by an individual in a short time. But I believe Jokowi will pursue peace no matter what.
In his Twitter account, the founder of and chairman of the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI), Dino Patti Djalal, expressed his disappointment with Jokowi's failure to get a meaningful concession from Russian President Vladimir Putin when they met on Thursday (June 28). The former deputy foreign minister concluded that Putin had totally ignored Jokowi's peace mission because Russia was bombarding Ukraine when Jokowi arrived in Moscow.
On the same day, the Asian Wall Street Journal, in its report "Indonesia's Jokowi Visit Ukraine and Russia, Warning Food Crisis Looms", quoted Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak research institute in Singapore, as praising Jokowi's initiative to play a mediating role in the war in Ukraine.
"It looks good for Indonesia playing a role on the world stage even if it doesn't achieve anything," said Storey.
I do agree with his view. Indonesia is too big and too important to just focus on its own domestic agenda or to limit itself as the anchor of the 10-member Asean. With all due respect, Indonesia is too important to devote itself to the regional grouping or become a defender of the ruthless Myanmar junta just for the sake of Asean's unity.
Indonesia's public opinion tends to highly praise Jokowi's courage to go to war-torn Ukraine and softly approach Putin to ease the sea blockade of Ukraine without criticising his invasion of a sovereign nation.
Some of Jokowi's die-hard supporters even proposed the absurd idea of proposing the President as this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Unlike his predecessors, especially sixth president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono who was very ambitious to be recognised as one of the world's leading leaders, especially in resolving global issues, Jokowi is very inward-looking. He never expected to play a prominent role in the war in Ukraine. I don't know why. I am tempted to compare him to the character in the old movie Accidental Hero.
Initially, Jokowi just wanted to make sure that all leaders of the Group of 20 will turn up for the summit in Bali this coming November.
His ambition almost collapsed after the Russian invasion. United States President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had threatened to boycott the Bali summit when Jokowi was persistent in inviting Putin.
But later, the Western leaders changed their minds and promised to go to Bali even with Putin present. The beauty of Bali is apparently too difficult for them to resist, along with the persuasive approach of Jokowi.
The war in Ukraine will likely force the European Union to soften its attack on the use of coal for energy and the danger of palm oil to the world's environment. It recently asked Indonesia to export more coal to Europe after their decision to cut coal imports from Russia. The devastating sunflower industry in Russia and Ukraine also compelled the EU to swallow its own "dirty words" on Indonesia's palm oil.
After his courageous trip to Ukraine and Russia, President Jokowi should immediately build a solid and strong team to follow up on his peace initiative. He cannot just depend on Foreign Minister Reno LP Marsupial because she will also be preoccupied with preparations for the G-20 Summit.
I suggest that the President choose experienced and globally accepted diplomats and senior military generals to sit on his special advisory board. Former foreign ministers Hassan Wirajuda and Marty Natalegawa and Dino are among the right persons to help the President. They do not have any conflicts of interest and as far as I know, the three diplomats have no political ambitions.
In the lead-up to the G-20 Summit, the presence of a powerful presidential spokesman with deep knowledge and experience in foreign diplomacy, as well as a personal bond with the President, is absolutely needed. The candidate should come from within the Foreign Ministry.
President Jokowi still has a few more months to set up the agenda on Ukraine in G-20, and he has a strong position as a peacebroker. First, as the rotary chair of the world's 20 largest economies, he will preside over the G-20 Summit.
Second, Jokowi is one of the six world leaders who were appointed by United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, along with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, to form the Champion Group of UN Global Crisis Response Group (GCRG) in April.
Third, Jokowi is also the president of Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous nation, the third-largest democracy after India and the US and the world's most populous Muslim nation.
Indonesia has maintained its long-standing impartiality in global diplomacy and has had strong ties with both Russia and Ukraine for decades.
Amid the West's massive campaign against Russia, Putin has felt more comfortable dealing with Jokowi, who came to see him as an "understanding" friend and not a critic of Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
However, it is unrealistic for Indonesia to play a single role in finding a solution to Russia's invasion. No matter how important Indonesia sees itself, the country is just a middle power.
It is true that Jokowi's mission to Moscow and Kyiv will not bring immediate results. But the President is on track to play a major peace-making role. The Indonesian people should support his initiative no matter their political stance.
*** The writer is a senior editor at The Jakarta Post.
