Jakarta. Indonesia is open to sending peacekeepers to Sudan, according to a minister, as a civil war in the African country rages unabated.

Violent clashes between the regular army, the Sudan Armed Forces, and the paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, erupted in April 2023. Foreign Minister Sugiono said Wednesday that Indonesia had been keeping the option of sending peacekeeping troops to conflict-hit regions open -- an offer that is not limited to Gaza.

“As long as there is a clear mandate from the United Nations [UN], we are ready [for a peacekeeping mission to Sudan],” Sugiono told the press in Jakarta.

The chief diplomat echoed President Prabowo Subianto’s statement at the UN podium in late September. In his UN debut, Prabowo had pitched to the world leaders how Jakarta was willing to contribute to global peace and take its “share of the burden”. 

“Indonesia is prepared to deploy 20,000 or even more of our sons and daughters to help secure peace in Gaza or elsewhere, in Ukraine, Sudan, Libya. Everywhere where peace needs to be enforced and guarded, we are ready,” Prabowo said at the time. 

Indonesia is the fifth-largest contributor to the global peacekeeping mission. Indonesia has sent 2,731 personnel as of the end of September 2025, just behind Bangladesh (5,649) and India (5,206). Nepal deployed the largest team of all countries, with a total of 6,031 individuals, followed by Rwanda with 5,885 personnel, according to UN data.

The UN has described the Sudan war as one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century. The two-year conflict has registered a death toll of approximately 150,000, according to media reports quoting the US special envoy to Sudan. After the war broke out, Indonesia evacuated hundreds of its citizens from Sudan, the evacuees reaching 926 individuals as of August 2024. Some Indonesians decided to stay in the country due to family and work commitments.