by GILANG KEMBARA
For much of April and into May, a team of negotiators from Indonesia have been in Washington to discuss trading relations between the world’s largest economy and another forecast to be in the Top 5 within a generation.
The Southeast Asian nation was among those hit hard by the across-the-board tariffs announced on April 2, 2025, by President Donald Trump, with a proposed 32% levy on its exports to the U.S. Trump subsequently backpedaled, putting in place a 90-day pause on any additional tariffs beyond a new 10% minimum.
So far, Indonesia – whose-second largest export market is the United States – has signaled its intent to negotiate rather than respond with countermeasures like some other countries targeted by Trump, such as China and Canada.
Indonesia may even offer to relax protectionist policies aimed at boosting domestic manufactures as a concession. “People who have known me for a long time would say I’m the most nationalist person … but we have to be realistic,” said President Prabowo Subianto.
The issue of Trump’s tariff policy is a major early test for Subianto, a right-wing populist whose worldview was shaped by decades of military experience. He views Indonesia and its place in the broader world through a lens of realist power politics – wanting to ensure Indonesia possesses adequate hard military power and robust economic performance.
Through pushing both, Subianto hopes to ensure that Indonesia is not easily swayed by foreign influence and can avoid domestic discontent due to any economic malaise. His approach to ruling the nation of over 280 million people is driven by a desire to retain friendly relations with the United States and China, retaining close economic and security cooperation with both.
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