Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto officially replaced foreign minister Sugiono, in a surprise reshuffle on Thursday, with his deputy, Arrmanatha Nasir, taking over the chief diplomat job. 

Sugiono —  the secretary-general of Prabowo’s Gerindra party — had long been subject to reshuffle rumors. He officially became the coordinating minister for cultural affairs, which means overseeing the sports and education ministries, among others. Sugiono replaced Pratikno, known for being a close aide to former leader Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. He was also subject to criticisms due to lack of diplomatic experience.

Arrmanatha, a career diplomat, had assumed multiple senior roles since joining the ministry in 1997.

He was the ambassador to France, a country with which Jakarta had built closer ties during the Prabowo administration. Arrmanatha was also Indonesia’s permanent representative to the UN in New York.

Sugiono had just returned from a New York trip to address the UN General Assembly.

He launched Indonesia’s campaign for a non-permanent seat at the UN Security Council for the 2029-2030 term. He also repeated Prabowo’s mantra on foreign diplomacy that “one thousand friends is too few, one enemy is too many”, a move that Jakarta believed could enable the country to win the bid.

The latest shake-up leaves the ministry having two deputies, Arief Havas Oegroseno and Anis Matta.

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