Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo attend a leaders’ retreat on Bintan island. Photo: AFP
Opinion
As I see it
by Lynn Lee
As I see it
by Lynn Lee
Indonesia-Singapore deals a milestone for Asean neighbours navigating minefields
Landmark agreements on airspace, extradition and defence are not only a sign of a new age in bilateral relations, but a show of unity in contentious times
With the Southeast Asian bloc entangled in problems from the South China Sea to Myanmar, the deals offer hope that diplomacy and negotiation can still yield outcomes
Indonesia and Singapore’s landmark agreements this week on airspace boundaries, extradition and defence cooperation have been lauded as a mark of mature and strong bilateral relations. The deals, signed by heavyweight ministers from both sides and witnessed by both countries’ leaders, bring to a close years of sometimes heated public wrangling.
Indonesian politicians have from time to time accused Singapore of dragging its feet on an extradition treaty, alleging that it is enjoying the benefits of harbouring Indonesian fugitives and their ill-gotten gains. Each time, officials have issued deep-throated rebuttals to point out that Singapore has cooperated with Indonesian authorities in graft or fraud investigations and that it is ready to implement the extradition treaty together with a defence agreement, as originally agreed.
Singapore commentators have since heralded the agreements – which still need to be ratified by the Indonesian parliament – as a new age for relations between the city state of 5.45 million and Southeast Asia’s largest economy, which is home to 270 million. For Indonesia, which is chairing the G20 this year, the agreement has boosted the foreign policy legacy of President Joko Widodo, once criticised for being too focused on domestic issues.
Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo at a leaders’ retreat on Bintan island. Photo: EPA
The agreement to redraw airspace boundaries in particular has been hailed domestically as Jakarta reclaiming its sovereignty – the headline of an Indonesian language news story on the Bisnis Indonesia website read “It’s legit! Natuna Air Space falls into Indonesian hands after 76 years of control by Singapore”. This even though sovereignty has never been disputed by Singapore; its control of the airspace above Indonesia’s Riau Islands in the Natuna Sea was the result of an International Civil Aviation Organisation decision in 1946. Revenue collected by Singapore in its provision of air navigation services over Indonesian airspace has always been handed over to Jakarta.
Still, the consensus reached by both sides is symbolic, beyond being significant for the countries involved. It shows that diplomacy and strategic negotiation can still yield outcomes in an increasingly contentious geopolitical environment. It is a necessary show of unity as Asean (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) navigates political minefields in the region with an eye to maintaining its centrality, and preventing outside interference from larger powers.
Four of Asean’s 10 members are currently tangled up in an ongoing South China Sea dispute with Beijing. Reports say that Indonesia is seeking to engage in a “minilateral” with claimant states Brunei, the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam (with Singapore also invited) to discuss a response to Beijing’s growing assertiveness.
But the most immediate concern for Asean now has to do with Myanmar and its people, who have been wrecked by ongoing unrest for one year since the military junta grabbed power from an elected government. Bloc members themselves are divided over the appropriate response though collectively, Asean has insisted that junta chief Min Aung Hlaing cease violence against protesters and respect a five-point agreement.
This has so far fallen on deaf ears and the bloc has no good options to enforce it. Telling the regime to stay away from Asean meetings until it complies comes with its own complications.
As Myanmar approaches the first anniversary of the coup on Tuesday February 1, more than 1,400 people have been killed. It remains to be seen if Cambodian leader Hun Sen, as Asean chair, can succeed in his recent outreach to the junta chief. While the United States and China have so far supported Asean’s strategy of diplomatic pressure rather than direct interference, time for Myanmar’s people, and Asean’s credibility, is fast running out.
