Indonesia and the Indo-Pacific

This book examines Indonesia’s strategies and policies to influence regional cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, focusing especially on Indonesia’s efforts to be the maritime fulcrum in the Indo-Pacific during President Joko Widodo’s (Jokowi) administration from 2014 until the present. Highlighting the importance of Indonesia as the largest country in Southeast Asia and as a founder member of ASEAN, the book, based on extensive original research, provides key insights into Indonesia’s maritime policy decision-making since 2014. It discusses the domestic political context in which foreign policy decisions are made, provides an explanation for Indonesia’s efforts to project its vision of Indo-Pacific cooperation at the ASEAN level and beyond, and demonstrates how Indonesia strives to maintain a delicate balance in its interactions with major powers in the region, including the United States, China, and Japan.

List of Figures List of Tables List of Abbreviations A Note on the Author Acknowledgements Introduction Locating Indonesia in the Literature on the Indo-Pacific Indonesia’s Perception of Threats Indonesia and Regional Maritime Security Outline of This book 1 Domestic Politics and Global Maritime Fulcrum Indonesia’s Leadership in Maritime Affairs Indonesia’s Conception of Global Maritime Fulcrum Domestic Source of Global Maritime Fulcrum The Rise and Decline of the Global Maritime Fulcrum? Conclusion 2 Projecting Indonesia’s Vision of Indo-Pacific at ASEAN and Beyond Indonesia’s Indo-Pacific Concept Indonesia and the Pacific Ocean Region Indonesia and the Indian Ocean Global Pandemic and the War in Ukraine Conclusion 3 Indonesia and the United States: Improving and Increasing Cooperation Introduction Indonesian Government Discourses on U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy On the QUAD On AUKUS Media Representation of U.S. Indo-Pacific Leadership Conclusion 4 Indonesia-China Relations: A Growing Discontent Introduction Indonesian Government Discourse on China’s Influence in the Indo-Pacific Region Media Representation of China’s Influence in the Indo-Pacific Region Conclusion 5 Indonesia and Japan Relations in the Indo-Pacific Era Introduction Japan Indo-Pacific Leadership and Its Depiction in Indonesian Government Discourse Maritime Security Cooperation Infrastructure and Connectivity Media Representation of Japan’s Leadership in Indo-Pacific Conclusion Conclusion Future work Index

Senia Febrica is a Knowledge Exchange Associate, an early career researcher in the One Ocean Hub of the Law School, University of Strathclyde, UK and a Senior Research Fellow (Honorary) in the American Studies Center, Universitas Indonesia, Indonesia.