Jakarta. The US seeks to bring home the remains of its World War II soldiers who had died in Indonesia, as Washington continues its search for tens of thousands of fallen personnel.

President Prabowo Subianto had sent his defense minister Sjafrie Sjamsoedin, on a mission to the Pentagon on Monday. It was then that both governments unveiled what they called a “major defense cooperation partnership”. Jakarta agreed to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the DPAA — the US agency in charge of identifying the US personnel who had gone missing on duty from past conflicts. The deal is expected to intensify the search efforts in Indonesia’s Morotai, a strategic military base during the war. 

Defense Ministry spokesman Rico Ricardo Sirait acknowledged that the search was part of Washington’s moral responsibility to its people. Even so, the entire process is still subject to several conditions despite the agreement. Indonesia still requires the US to gain written approval from its defense ministry. Any investigation must adhere to Indonesian law.  

"In principle, this is a humanitarian and historical partnership for research, search, recovery, identification, and repatriation of the remains of the US personnel from the World War II in the Indonesian territory," Rico told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday.

“The activities shall pay attention the the interests of [our] local communities, environmental protection, and historical values. We expect them to provide social, academic, and economic benefits wherever they conduct [the investigation].”

Rico did not say when asked if there were early estimates of the remains in Indonesia.

During the Pentagon talks, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth thanked Sjafrie for assisting with the search for the "soldiers who fought alongside Indonesians during World War II”. He was hopeful that the MoU could enable the US to “recover those missing service members and return them to their families."

Both countries, last March, conducted an investigation in Morotai, North Maluku. The place was a major base for Allied powers beginning in 1944. Any subsequent search efforts have put emphasis on Morotai since then. The team did archaeological surveys and interviewed people for clues the soldiers' whereabouts.

As the search continues, Indonesia is now mulling setting up an international training facility in Morotai, and has already pitched the idea to Australia. Sjafrie admitted that the military infrastructure — left by the war — made it an ideal place for training, although it would still require some renovations.

Over 72,000 Americans remain unaccounted for from World War II, according to the government estimates in 2025. 

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