Prabowo looks to deepen ties with Malaysia as Indonesia bolsters military for new capital on Borneo

Prabowo is a former general of Indonesia’s elite special forces and observers regard him as the country’s most powerful defence minister of the post-Suharto era

His appointment coincides with Indonesia’s plans to move its capital from Jakarta to Kalimantan on Borneo island, home to two Malaysian states

4-MIN READ4-MIN

Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto (left) with Malaysian defence minister Mohamad Sabu in Kuala Lumpur. Photo: EPA

Published: 5:07pm, 15 Nov 2019Updated: 10:24pm, 15 Nov 2019

For his first official trip as Indonesia’s new defence minister, Prabowo Subianto this week visited Malaysia, underscoring the importance of the strategic and security partnership between the two countries that share land and maritime borders.

Prabowo is a former general of Kopassus, Indonesia’s elite special forces, and his Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) holds the third-largest bloc of seats in parliament, leading observers to regard him as the country’s most powerful defence minister of the post-Suharto era.

His appointment coincides with Indonesia’s plans to move its capital from Jakarta to east Kalimantan on Borneo island. The Malaysian territories of Sabah and Sarawak are also on Borneo, creating a potential flashpoint in relations given that Indonesia’s military build-up around the site of its new capital is expected to continue in an effort to secure the area. Prabowo, however, preferred to emphasise areas of cooperation.

“In the future, I believe the defence ties between Malaysia and Indonesia will become even better,” he told a press conference on Thursday after meeting Malaysian defence minister Mohamad Sabu to discuss defence strategy and counterterrorism. “We are looking for new and better cooperation, exchange of officers, students … and cooperation in the technical field [of the] defence industry.

“I was directed by President Joko Widodo to ensure the ties between Malaysia and Indonesia are maintained and strengthened,” added Prabowo, who was on a two-day trip.

He continued on to Bangkok on Friday for the Asean Defence Ministers Meeting Plus to confer with the defence chiefs from the 10-nation bloc and eight global partners, including US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper and his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe.

Shahriman Lockman, senior analyst at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, said Malaysia needed to understand Prabowo’s priorities given his influence as defence minister.