China's Xi hails 'new chapter' in relations with Indonesia

Chinese President Xi Jinping told his Indonesian counterpart that Beijing hopes for a “new chapter” in bilateral relations, as the two leaders met on Saturday.

Xi held talks with President Prabowo Subianto in Beijing, the first stop of the Indonesian leader’s inaugural foreign tour since he took office in October.

China is keen to work with Indonesia to “write a new chapter of joint self-reliance, solidarity and cooperation, mutual benefit and win-win results as major developing countries”, Xi told Prabowo in front of journalists.

Beijing and Jakarta are key economic allies, with Chinese companies ploughing money into extracting Indonesian natural resources in recent years, particularly the nickel sector.

But the two countries have sparred verbally over disputed claims in the South China Sea.

Prabowo said that the relationship between the two countries was “getting stronger and stronger”.

“I would like to reiterate our commitment… to work together for the mutual benefit of our two peoples and for the prosperity, peace and stability of all of Asia,” he added.

Xi held a welcome ceremony for Prabowo at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on Saturday.

After their talks, officials from the two countries signed a series of documents including memorandums of understanding on maritime safety and water resources cooperation.

Prabowo, who landed in China on Friday, is also meeting Premier Li Qiang and number three official Zhao Leji during his trip, which ends on Sunday.

He will travel onwards to Washington, at the invitation of US President Joe Biden, as part of a world tour which will also include Peru, Brazil and Britain.

Prabowo has pledged to stick to Jakarta’s traditionally non-aligned foreign policy while making the world’s fourth-most populous nation more active abroad.

– Maritime disputes –

Confrontations over what Indonesia says are Chinese incursions into its territorial waters have weighed on the trading partners’ relationship in recent years.

In 2020, Indonesia deployed fighter jets and warships to patrol around the Natuna islands in the South China Sea after Chinese vessels entered the area.

Last month, Indonesia said it drove Chinese coast guard ships from contested waters in the South China Sea on three separate occasions.

Indonesia says it is trying to stop foreign vessels from fishing in its waters, costing the economy billions of dollars annually.

Huge unexploited oil and gas deposits are believed to lie under the South China Sea, though estimates vary greatly.

Beijing has for years sought to expand its presence in the contested waters, brushing aside an international ruling that its claim to most of the waterway has no legal basis.

It has built artificial islands armed with missile systems and runways for fighter jets, and deployed vessels that the Philippines says harass its ships and block its fishers.

The recent confrontations were an early test for Prabowo, who has pledged to bolster the defence of Indonesian territory.

Prabowo has promised to be bolder on foreign policy than his predecessor Joko Widodo, who focused more on domestic issues.