Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono (left) and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrive for a press briefing at the Diaoyutai State Guest House. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
BEIJING/JAKARTA (Bloomberg): China and Indonesia held their first meeting of senior ministers under a format agreed to last year, a sitdown that coincides with Beijing’s push to woo Asian nations and offset trade tensions with the US.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a briefing in Beijing after the talks Monday that the international landscape faced the "severe impact of unilateralism and hegemonism,” adding that "the more complex and volatile the external environment is, the more significant for China and Indonesia to pursue solidarity and cooperation.”
Wang was joined by Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun, and Foreign Minister Sugiono and Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin of Indonesia. Sjamsoeddin said the meeting showed "the value of deepening Indonesia-China cooperation in the defense sectors,” pointing to "regular, high-level military exchange, joint training,” and collaboration between the nations’ militaries and defense industries.
The two sides also announced plans to hold joint military exercises this year in a sign of growing security ties between countries that have longstanding differences in the disputed South China Sea. While Jakarta is not a formal claimant in the sea dispute, Indonesia has typically refrained from recognizing China’s vast claims.
The upcoming drills focused on counterterrorism echo strategies long employed by the US to deepen military ties in Southeast Asia, particularly in the Philippines. They come as Beijing steps up its military diplomacy in the region, vying with Washington for strategic influence as tensions mount in the Indo-Pacific.
China and Indonesia want the new "2+2” mechanism, a reference to the number of top officials joining from each side, to act as a platform for political, defense and security matters.
The talks come as Beijing tries to win over nations in especially South-East Asia and Europe as US President Donald Trump levies tariffs on friend and foe. Last week, Chinese leader Xi Jinping visited Vietnam, Cambodia and Malaysia to rally Asia to Beijing’s cause.
China has also warned nations against cooperating with the US in ways that hurt Beijing’s interests, highlighting how economies around the world will increasingly have to balance ties between the powerhouses.
Indonesia is considering buying US weapons to possibly ward off Trump’s tariffs.
Sjamsoeddin held a closed-door meeting with senior officials on April 8 to deliver a directive from President Prabowo Subianto instructing them to identify US equipment that could be imported or fast-tracked for purchase.
Sugiono was part of an Indonesian delegation that visited Washington last week to try to strike trade, investment and financial-sector deals with the Trump administration.
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