The latest Indonesia-Qatar defence agreement needs deliverables, not diplomacy

Indonesia and Qatar this week signed a Statement of Intent on defense cooperation, paving the way for a formal Defense Cooperation Agreement covering military training, personnel exchanges, joint exercises, cybersecurity, and defense industrial collaboration.

The agreement reflects a broader trend. Since President Prabowo Subianto took office, Indonesia has expanded engagement with Gulf countries through strategic dialogues, investment partnerships, and now defense cooperation.

The problem is not the agreement itself.

The problem is that Indonesia has signed many similar agreements before.

Over the years, Jakarta has established defense partnerships with countries across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. Most promised training, technology transfer, industrial cooperation, and capacity building. Some delivered meaningful results. Many produced little beyond ceremonial exchanges and diplomatic goodwill.

The Indonesia-Qatar initiative risks suffering the same fate unless both sides move quickly from symbolism to implementation.

This challenge is particularly important today.

The agreement comes as the Middle East faces one of its most volatile periods in years. The conflict involving Iran has exposed the vulnerability of regional security arrangements, disrupted trade routes, and heightened uncertainty across the Gulf. Governments throughout the region are reassessing their strategic assumptions and searching for new forms of resilience.

For Qatar, expanding partnerships with countries beyond its immediate neighborhood is a logical response. Diversification has long been a cornerstone of Doha’s foreign policy, and the current regional instability only strengthens that logic.

For Indonesia, however, the value of the partnership will depend entirely on execution.

The first priority should be defense human capital.

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The agreement places significant emphasis on education, training, and personnel exchanges. This is the most realistic area for immediate progress. Rather than focusing on occasional visits by senior officers, both governments should establish long-term exchange programs involving military academies, staff colleges, cyber specialists, and defense planners. Success should be measured by the number of officers trained, joint curricula developed, and institutional partnerships created.

The second priority should be cybersecurity.

Unlike conventional defense cooperation, cybersecurity addresses challenges faced by both countries regardless of geography. Indonesia confronts growing cyber threats targeting government institutions and critical infrastructure. Qatar faces similar concerns, particularly as digital systems become increasingly important to national security and economic resilience.

A practical starting point would be joint cyber exercises, information-sharing mechanisms, and cooperation between cybersecurity agencies. These initiatives are less politically sensitive than weapons procurement and can generate tangible outcomes relatively quickly.

The third priority should be narrowing the focus of defense industrial cooperation.

This is where many defense agreements fail.

The phrase “defense industry cooperation” often sounds ambitious but lacks specificity. Neither Indonesia nor Qatar is likely to become a major defense manufacturing partner for the other. Attempting to pursue broad industrial cooperation across multiple sectors could dilute resources and produce little impact.

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Instead, both governments should identify a limited number of niche areas where collaboration is feasible. Cybersecurity technologies, unmanned systems, military logistics, and defense-related digital applications may offer more realistic opportunities than large-scale weapons production.

The fourth priority should be linking defense cooperation to broader strategic dialogue.

The current instability in the Middle East demonstrates that security challenges increasingly transcend geography. Maritime security, energy security, cyber threats, and supply-chain disruptions affect both Gulf and Asian economies.

Rather than treating defense cooperation as a standalone initiative, Indonesia and Qatar should use it as part of a wider conversation about emerging security risks. This would make the relationship more relevant to contemporary challenges and less dependent on traditional military exchanges.

Most importantly, both sides should establish measurable benchmarks.

How many officers will participate in exchanges each year? What cyber initiatives will be launched? Which industrial projects will receive funding? What outcomes are expected within three or five years?

Without clear targets, the agreement risks becoming another addition to an already crowded list of strategic partnerships.

The timing of the deal offers an opportunity. The instability generated by the Iran conflict has reminded governments across the Middle East that resilience requires more than military hardware. It requires institutions, partnerships, expertise, and adaptability.

Indonesia and Qatar have taken the first step toward building such a partnership.

The harder task begins now.

The success of the agreement will not be determined by what was signed in Jakarta this week. It will be determined by whether, five years from now, both countries can point to concrete capabilities, institutions, and expertise that did not exist before.

In defense cooperation, implementation matters far more than intent.

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The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.