Modi's visit marks new era for Indonesia-India strategic partnership

Jakarta (ANTARA) - On a sunny day in early July 2026, President Prabowo Subianto bestowed upon Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi the Adipurna Star of the Republic of Indonesia.

The nation’s highest civilian honor symbolized decades of deep-rooted friendship.

The decoration, however, only partly reflected the breadth of diplomatic gains Modi brought home from his intensive engagements with Prabowo from July 6 to 9.

He began his Indonesian itinerary with talks at the Merdeka Palace, marking a high-profile reunion with the president.

The two leaders subsequently witnessed the signing of 16 landmark cooperation documents.

The deliverables spanned fields of critical mutual interest, ranging from maritime security to missile procurement, and from agriculture to higher education.

The results made the visit one of the most fruitful engagements since the two nations signed their comprehensive strategic partnership agreement in 2018.

Modi made this second visit to Indonesia largely to reciprocate the Indonesian president’s attendance at India’s 76th Republic Day celebrations in January 2025.

That landmark trip to New Delhi underscored Prabowo's active and progressive diplomacy.

Indeed, he has made dozens of diplomatic trips within his first 19 months in office, reaffirming his firm commitment to Indonesia's traditional "free and active" foreign policy doctrine.

Under his command, three Indonesian F-16s and two Sukhoi fighter jets escorted Modi’s plane to a safe landing at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in East Jakarta.

Prabowo went as far as to directly welcome the Indian leader at the foot of the aircraft stairs—a rare gesture not extended to just any foreign dignitary.

The two leaders then proceeded to formal ceremonies and strategic talks at the palace the following day.

Defense at the Forefront

Of all the cooperation deals, the most significant pertained to defense.

After years of signaling interest, Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense signed a contract with BrahMos Aerospace to procure BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles—an advanced weapon jointly developed by India and Russia.

Adding to the defense portfolio was a deal between Indonesia’s Republikorp and Bharat Dynamics Limited, India’s state-run defense company, paving the way for Indonesia to expand its arsenal of air defense equipment.

In a joint statement alongside Modi, Prabowo also floated the idea of organizing the third edition of the India-Indonesia Security Dialogue.

The forum would serve to further deepen defense ties, with a specific emphasis on technology development and mitigating transnational crime.

Sharing characteristics as major maritime powers bound by similar interests in the Indian Ocean, Indonesia and India also agreed to step up cooperation in maritime affairs and the blue economy, including joint port development.

From Markets to Heritage

The Prabowo–Modi encounter proved to be a highly prolific reunion for both economies. Indonesia and India aligned their visions to advance talks on a preferential trade agreement and to revisit the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement, which has been in effect for a decade.

Yet, the most promising development for stronger people-to-people connections was a target to integrate their digital payment systems by the end of 2026, linking the Quick Response Code Indonesia Standard (QRIS) to India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

This initiative opens the door for far more convenient cross-border transactions, which, in turn, is expected to boost tourism between the two countries.

Beyond traditional notions of security, Indonesia and India laid the groundwork for safeguarding energy supplies, planning to jointly develop solar power plants, exchange technology, and build nuclear energy capacity.

Prabowo portrayed diversifying energy sources as an inevitable measure for Indonesia to strengthen its energy security amid evolving global challenges.

Setting sights on natural resource capitalization, the two countries reached agreements involving mineral technology companies, alongside a planned strategic joint venture between the Steel Authority of India and Indonesia’s PT Krakatau Steel.

This package of deals plays directly into Indonesia’s broader agenda to attach higher added value to its natural wealth under its ongoing economic downstreaming policy.

The commitment to closer bilateral ties does not stop at weaponry or trade.

As Modi noted, the Indian government is determined to expand international partnerships in poverty alleviation, highlighting Indonesia’s Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program.

He offered Prabowo India’s best practices and extensive experience in handling large-scale public feeding initiatives to help refine the MBG program, which is currently under evaluation.

Further aiming to improve public welfare, Indonesia and India agreed to develop a quality healthcare workforce and strengthen regulatory frameworks for pharmaceutical products.

On education, Prabowo openly supported the Indian Institutes of Management establishing an Indonesian campus and welcomed plans for the Indian Institutes of Technology to set up a branch in the country.

He also expressed hope for more Indonesian students to attend Indian universities.

The Jakarta meeting also marked the designation of 2026–2027 as the Tagore-Dewantara Year, commemorating a century since Indian poet and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore crossed paths with the father of Indonesian education, Ki Hajar Dewantara.

Spotlighting their ancient cultural ties, Indonesia and India agreed to work hand in hand to conserve and restore the Prambanan Temple complex, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Yogyakarta.

Prabowo and Modi announced the cultural cooperation during their palace meeting before jointly launching the initiative the following day at the historic Hindu site, which features structures illustrating ancient epics celebrated across both nations.

The restoration is set for completion before 2029, with the Indian leader promising to return to witness the result in person.

Still, the very first pact exchanged among the 16 was one extending the partnership on space exploration between Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Geopolitical Context

One may argue that the string of agreements was, to some extent, driven by regional dynamics.

The BrahMos contract, for instance, came shortly after China tested a long-range ballistic missile into the Pacific—a coincidence interpreted by analysts as part of Indo-Pacific defense strengthening amid escalating global tensions.

Indonesia was Modi’s first stop on his regional tour, a clear signal that Jakarta holds a pivotal place in India’s diplomatic calculus.

From Indonesia’s side, Modi bringing home 16 cooperation deals in a single visit reflects Prabowo’s stance that successful diplomacy must yield concrete outcomes.

The same pattern has appeared in other state visits throughout the year.

Often described as Asia’s largest democracies, Indonesia and India have enjoyed robust relations woven by overlapping interests since 1951.

Yet the real work begins after the ink dries.

Indonesia’s past experience with foreign partners shows that the number of signed documents does not always match the pace of implementation, especially for strategic projects like defense procurement or energy infrastructure.

That said, Prabowo stressed that all the deals reached with India must quickly be translated into active initiatives that offer tangible benefits to the public.

Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono

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