Jakarta. Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has set her sights on deeper defense ties with Indonesia, as the hardline conservative worries about regional stability.

President Prabowo Subianto has sent his chief diplomat Sugiono and defense tsar Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin on a 2+2 ministerial meeting with their Japanese counterparts in Tokyo. On Tuesday, the two ministers paid a courtesy call to Takaichi, Japan’s first female leader, who had only been in office for a month. An overview of the discussions provided by the Japanese government showed that Takaichi wanted to work closely with Prabowo on safeguarding the region.

“[Prime minister Takaichi] stated that the third Japan-Indonesia 2+2 meeting was extremely timely as the security environment is becoming increasingly severe,” the overview reads.

According to Takaichi, getting closer to Indonesia is “truly important” in Japan’s quest for a “free and open Indo-Pacific”. Tokyo also wishes to work with Jakarta in strengthening what it calls a “free and open international order based on the rule of law”.  The overview went on to say how Takaichi wanted to advance cooperation in “a wide range of fields, including security and defense cooperation”. The statement did not disclose more details on the meeting, except that Indonesia also shared the same interest in advancing bilateral cooperation in “concrete manners.”

Indonesia's 2+2 meeting with Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi saw both countries zeroing in on maritime security. Japan has agreed to give high-speed patrol boats, as well as a large-scale patrol vessel, to the Southeast Asian country. The boats will sail to the archipelagic Indonesia via grant schemes, thereby enabling Jakarta to supercharge its surveillance of territorial waters without incurring significant financial costs. 

Pyongyang’s denuclearization, as well as Russia-North Korea’s military cooperation, were among the topics discussed at the 2+2 talks, the press release revealed.

Russian and North Korean military officials had gathered in the latter’s capital earlier this month. South Korean assessments claimed that Pyongyang had sent 15,000 troops to Russia since last fall, while supplying arms needed for Moscow’s war against Ukraine. 

“Concerning the situation in North Korea, the four ministers shared serious concerns over the nuclear and missile development, and the advancement of Russia-North Korea military cooperation …,” the Japanese government said.

“... And confirmed the full implementation of the related UN Security Council resolutions toward the denuclearization of North Korea.”

Under Prabowo, Indonesia has been embracing a “good neighbor” foreign policy as Jakarta seeks to befriend everyone, including in the security front. Just last week, Indonesia unveiled a landmark security treaty with its close neighbor Australia. The pact is slated for signature in January. 

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