Sjafrie said there would be increased defence activities between their militaries, including joint exercises and officer exchanges, plus partnerships in the defence industry.
“This is a progressive step taken in the era of building Indonesia’s defence power at this moment and in the future,” he said.
Last week, Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, was angered by a rare joint military exercise between the Chinese and Indonesian navies that took place east of Taiwan. Indonesia’s navy said a vessel conducted routine exercises, not only with China, but also with Japan and the United States.
Defence analyst Curie Maharani said that while Indonesia saw the exercise as routine, the location enabled China to signal a different political message.
“Indonesia learned a valuable lesson about how great powers use defence diplomacy more as an instrument of influence projection,” she said.
Indonesia also has its own disagreements with China over developments in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety. Jakarta has been measured in its remarks, however, and sees itself as not being party to wider territorial disputes involving China and the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam.
TRADE AND INVESTMENT
China is a major investor in Indonesia, contributing US$3.9 billion of foreign direct investment in the first half of 2026, according to Indonesian figures. But regulations around some of that investment have been a source of friction.
In May, Chinese companies operating in Indonesia urged the government to adopt more business-friendly policies, saying higher taxes and a new nickel pricing formula were driving up costs and threatening investment.
In a letter seen by Reuters, the China Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia said Chinese firms faced “excessively stringent regulation, over-enforcement”, and alleged corruption and extortion by authorities.
Key investors include the world’s biggest EV battery maker, Contemporary Amperex Technology, and steelmaker Tsingshan Group, which has smelters in Indonesia.
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