Editorial
The relationship between India and Indonesia has suffered from strategic caution, a tendency to drift into parallel diplomatic orbits rather than actively combining forces to shape global policy.
President Prabowo Subianto (left) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi chat during a joint press briefing at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Jan. 25, 2025. (AFP/Money Sharma)
The state visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Jakarta this week marks a significant juncture for Asian diplomacy. For two maritime neighbors sharing an expansive ocean boundary and deep civilizational roots, the relationship between India and Indonesia has long felt like a reservoir of unfulfilled potential.Despite decades of warm rhetoric, the strategic synergy between New Delhi and Jakarta has rarely matched its geographic and demographic weight. It is time for both nations to move past diplomatic pleasantries and forge a partnership capable of delivering a lasting impact for the Global South.
The two countries have been powerfully aligned before. The mid-20th century offers a blueprint for what a synchronized India and Indonesia can achieve on the world stage. The 1955 Bandung Conference and the subsequent founding of the Non-Aligned Movement stand as landmark achievements in modern diplomacy.
