It was no coincidence that the Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto was given the pride of place at the ceremony celebrating the completion of 75 years of the Indian republic for the legendary leader of that nation, President Sukarno, had been the chief guest at the first Indian Republic Day parade in Jan. 1950.
Delicate negotiations may have taken place after inviting Mr Subianto in convincing him not to travel on to Pakistan directly from New Delhi as he may have intended to for India may not have appreciated an adverse message that such travel may have conveyed. In gracious acceptance of the condition, Indonesia has shown how much it values this continuation of the close bilateral ties between the two countries and the importance of the state visit by its President.
As the largest economy of Southeast Asia and 10th largest in the world in terms of purchasing power parity, Indonesia’s economic heft has been growing even as the percentage of people in poverty declining. And the symbolism of inviting its head as the chief guest at India’s show of pomp, pageantry and power was further enhanced by that nation being home to the largest Muslim population in the world.
That President Subianto travelled with a high-profile delegation of ministers, bureaucrats and representatives of business numbering around 100 was an indication of the importance his government was attaching to the visit. The signing of five memoranda of understanding is the first step towards the next level of ties in which India recognises Indonesia as an important partner of New Delhi in the Indo-Pacific whose membership of BRICS, which came into effect this month, was actively promoted by India.
The MoUs envisage the boosting of cooperation in several areas like maritime safety, health and digital technology with India having considerable expertise in money transfers. There may, however, be considerable ground to cover in bilateral trade for India that has a deficit of about $24 billion in $30 billion, but that may be because India has had Indonesia as a key supplier of coal, besides mineral fuels, chemical products, palm oil and flat-rolled iron and steel products.
It is significant that Indonesia is inviting Indian expertise in medical care and running of hospitals to participate in its economy, besides calling on private Indian airport operators. While some Indian automobile companies make in Indonesia, the country has tariffs on import of cars and the Indian Prime Minister may have made a special appeal for Indonesia to look at importing cars and vehicles from India as the country takes pride in the quality of its manufacture of automobiles.
Given the relative nearness of India and the Indonesian archipelago, which shares a maritime boundary with Andamans and Nicobar, it would make sense for India to try and close the trade gap. Prime Minister Modi’s comment that everything was discussed including diversifying market access and the trade basket was in line with President Subianto’s description of their talks as “intensive and frank”. The vibes of a bilateral meeting with Indonesia may have added to the celebration of a milestone occasion for India.
