Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Dr. Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat
-
Prabowo keeps lying on Palestine
This week, at the 28th anniversary celebration of the National Awakening Party (PKB) in Jakarta, President Prabowo Subianto reached for a line he’s reached for many times before. Indonesia gets along with everyone, he said, but backing Palestinian independence is the one thing nobody can talk him out of. The…
-
Indonesia’s decision to deport a Palestinian activist is a moral failure
On July 16, Indonesian authorities arrested a Palestinian activist named Abdul Karim Raed Miqdad. By the next morning he was on a plane to Cyprus. Human rights monitors now warn he could end up in Israeli custody. Indonesia can probably point to paperwork that justifies each step along the way.…
-
Monuments without a country: Indonesia’s empty gesture to Palestine
Madrid played host this week to a strange piece of theater. Ministers gathered to talk about rebuilding Palestinian culture — its cinema, its archives, its museums — at a conference bearing the bloodless title “International Conference on the Reconstruction of Cultural Sector in Palestine.” Indonesia’s culture minister, Fadli Zon, came…
-
Indonesia’s half-hearted response to Khamenei’s funeral undermines its own foreign policy
Indonesia eventually sent Foreign Minister Sugiono and MPR Speaker Ahmad Muzani to attend the funeral of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It was the correct decision. But the way Jakarta arrived at that decision revealed a troubling lack of confidence in its own foreign policy. The problem was…
-
Inside Indonesia’s growing market for fake Middle Eastern doctorates
For generations, Indonesian Muslims have looked to the Middle East as the highest destination for Islamic learning. A degree from Cairo, Medina or Riyadh has never been simply an academic qualification. It has represented years of mastering Arabic, studying under respected scholars and earning recognition from institutions whose reputations were…
-
Luhut’s BlackRock outreach legitimises genocide in Gaza
Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, chairman of Indonesia’s National Economic Council and one of the most influential figures in the country’s economic policymaking establishment, recently revealed that he had been encouraging BlackRock to invest in Indonesia. Speaking at Indonesia Summit 2026, Luhut described how executives from the world’s largest asset manager questioned…
-
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…
-
Can Kuwait really be Indonesia’s defence ally?
Indonesia’s Defense Ministry says it wants closer military cooperation with Kuwait through training, military education, and strategic dialogue. Officials presented the initiative as part of a long-standing bilateral relationship dating back to 1968. But Kuwait is unlikely to become a central pillar of Indonesia’s defense strategy, and the recent meeting…
-
Indonesia’s foreign minister didn’t defend the flotilla detainees. He defended Israel’s language
For years, Indonesia has wrapped itself in the moral vocabulary of anti-colonialism and Palestinian solidarity. Its leaders lecture the world about justice, occupation and humanitarian principles. They speak as if Indonesia occupies a unique ethical position among nations — a Muslim-majority democracy supposedly unafraid to confront power on behalf of…
-
Indonesia must respond more forcefully to Israel’s detention of its journalists at sea
Indonesia has condemned Israel’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla. Officials have demanded access to detained Indonesians and called for their release. That response is necessary. But it is not remotely sufficient for the gravity of what has happened. Nine Indonesians — including journalists from major national media outlets —…
-
Instead of indirectly insulting Yemen, Prabowo should be building relations with it
At a high-profile industrial groundbreaking event in Central Java, President Prabowo Subianto responded sharply to critics who describe Indonesia as being in decline. Rejecting the phrase “Indonesia is dark,” he declared that such critics have “blurred vision,” insisted the country is “bright,” and then went further: if they are unhappy,…
-
Indonesia and the Gulf must do more than soft power in a time of war
As tensions linked to the U.S.–Iran war continue to destabilize the Middle East, Indonesia and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states are expanding cooperation in culture, education, and the creative economy. These efforts are structured, growing, and politically safe. But they are also misaligned with the scale of the crisis. At…
-
Indonesia should use its Morocco pact to build a real security presence in MENA
On March 31, 2026, Morocco and Indonesia moved to deepen their security ties during talks in Rabat between Morocco’s top security official and Indonesia’s ambassador. The discussions focused on implementing existing agreements and drafting a new memorandum of understanding to formalize cooperation between their security agencies. The planned framework centers…
-
The killing of three Indonesian soldiers in Lebanon should remind Jakarta that Israel does not want peace
Three Indonesian soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon in less than 48 hours. They were not fighters. They were part of a United Nations peacekeeping mission (UNIFIL). They were stationed in known positions. And still, they died. This is not a tragic accident. It is a clear signal. The sequence…
-
Prabowo said no $1 billion—but his ministers signalled otherwise on the Board of Peace
By any reasonable standard, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s latest clarification should have settled the matter. Indonesia, he now insists, never promised to contribute $1 billion to the U.S.-backed Board of Peace. “We never said we would pay,” he emphasized, noting that Indonesia was absent from the founding donors’ meeting and…
-
Indonesia’s cautious response to the U.S.–Israel war on Iran
After days of silence, Indonesia has finally issued a statement on the war between the United States, Israel and Iran. The response, however, is strikingly cautious. President Prabowo Subianto said Indonesia is “on the right track” by refusing to take sides. Speaking on March 9, he emphasized that Indonesia should…
-
Can Indonesia mediate a US–Iran war?
Indonesia’s recent offer to mediate between Washington and Tehran might sound ambitious — but numerous factors suggest it is aspirational optics more than operational influence. This weekend, Jakarta issued a statement urging all parties to exercise restraint and prioritise diplomacy, and said President Prabowo Subianto is willing to travel to…
-
Some questions concerning Indonesia’s 8,000 troops in Gaza
At the inaugural Board of Peace meeting in Washington, President Prabowo Subianto pledged that Indonesia would send 8,000 or more troops to join an International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza. Standing beside U.S. President Donald Trump, he expressed confidence that real peace could be achieved and that Indonesia was ready…
-
Indonesia condemns West Bank annexation while sustaining a dangerous contradiction
This week, Indonesia joined Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates in condemning Israel’s decision to designate large areas of the occupied West Bank as so-called state land. The joint statement called it a serious escalation. It cited violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention, United…
-
One is too many: Indonesia must act now on citizen serving in Israel’s army
A report that an Indonesian citizen is serving in the Israeli military demands a firm response from Jakarta. If the report is correct, the government must act without delay. Israel’s campaign in Gaza has devastated civilians. Entire neighborhoods lie in ruins. Civilian deaths have reached staggering levels. Hunger and displacement…
-
Kuwait should go beyond oil in Indonesia
Kuwait should go beyond oil in Indonesia. The relationship is established, the economic signals are positive, and the policy alignment on energy transition already exists. What is needed now is a shift in investment strategy from hydrocarbon expansion to future energy systems. Indonesia has stated its intentions with clarity. Minister…
-
Indonesia’s vice foreign minister visits Egypt: Key takeaways
Indonesia’s Vice Foreign Minister Anis Matta arrived in Cairo on 4th February with a schedule that reflected both diplomacy and signaling. His visit did not produce a single headline agreement. Yet it offered a clear view of how Southeast Asia’s largest country sees its role in a shifting global order…
-
One meeting, one shift: Indonesia’s Muslim organisations change course on the Board of Peace
Indonesia’s presidential palace hosted what looked less like a policy consultation this week and more like a ritual of elite submission. President Prabowo Subianto summoned leaders of the country’s most influential Muslim organisations to discuss Indonesia’s participation in the United States backed Board of Peace. For nearly four hours, senior…
-
My response to a member of Indonesia’s Regional Representative Council on joining the Board of Peace
I write this to refute an article published by ANTARA, Indonesia’s state owned news agency, and authored by a former Chair of Indonesia’s Regional Representative Council (DPD RI) for 2009 to 2016 and a current member of the DPD RI for 2024 to 2029 from West Sumatra. I respond directly…