Waves of influence: Indonesia’s growing diplomatic power – Environment

As we reflected on the last decade, it was clear to everyone at the table that our country continues to build a formidable diplomatic presence. Its efforts go beyond simply advancing national interests; also takes responsibility for shaping regional and international affairs.

In a region dominated by entrenched competition between major powers, Indonesia has managed to maintain a delicate balance, skillfully navigating between these global powers while cultivating its own space.

This was not just our subjective view as members of the Indonesian diplomatic corps; this was also confirmed by Lowy’s latest API, which measures resources and influence to rank the relative strength of 27 countries using eight indicators. The data reflects what we have seen firsthand as diplomats: Indonesia is an increasingly influential player, skillfully balancing its aspirations while successfully addressing global challenges.

In the 2024 edition, Indonesia maintains its position among the top 10 Asian powers. While Indonesia ranks ninth behind Singapore in terms of overall score, it stands out on the index as the country that has made the most progress since its inception in 2018. The country’s score increased by 2.9 points, the most of any country included in this year’s API.

Lowy also praises Indonesia as a net outperformer in Asia as its positive power gap has improved significantly in 2024. This means that Indonesia is exerting more influence in the region than expected, given the resources available. The country also scored best on measures of “diplomatic influence” and “cultural influence”, advanced in “economic relations” and is more open in “defense networks”.

While Indonesia’s growing influence in Asia is multifaceted, the most noticeable factor driving the index’s growth is a marked increase in diplomatic efforts.