Indonesia, Australia to Sign New Treaty on Security

President Prabowo delivers a joint press statement with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese after inspecting the HMAS Canberra ship at Garden Island Naval Base, Sydney, Australia, on Wednesday (11/12). (Photo by: BPMI of Presidential Secretariat)

In a joint press statement with President Prabowo Subianto, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that Australia and Indonesia have substantively completed negotiations for a new bilateral treaty on security cooperation.

“The Governments of Australia and Indonesia have just substantively concluded negotiations on a new bilateral treaty on our common security. Australia’s relations with Indonesia are based on friendship, trust, mutual respect, and a shared commitment to peace and stability in our region,” PM Albanese said aboard HMAS Canberra, Garden Island Naval Base, Australia, Wednesday (11/12).

The treaty, PM Albanese added, stands as proof that peace and stability in the region are best preserved through collective action.

He also said that the agreement signals a new era in Australia–Indonesia relations, rooted in the spirit of security cooperation established 30 years ago through the historic agreement between the governments of Prime Minister Paul Keating and President Soeharto.

“It will build on the 2006 Lombok Treaty, which, among other things, reaffirmed Indonesia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. It’ll also build on the defense cooperation agreement that we signed together last year,” PM Albanese said.

According to the Australian Prime Minister, through this new treaty, both countries will conduct routine consultations at the leader and ministerial levels to address security issues and identify and undertake mutually beneficial security activities.

Additionally, he explained that if one or both parties face security threats, the two countries will meet to consider joint measures to address them.

“This is a watershed moment in the Australia–Indonesia relationship. This treaty represents a major extension of our existing security and defense cooperation. It shows the relationship is as strong as it has ever been. And that’s a remarkable thing for our region and for the people of both Australia and Indonesia,” he said.

PM Albanese also revealed his plan to visit Indonesia next January at the President Prabowo Subianto’s invitation to sign the new treaty. (BPMI of Presidential Secretariat) (FI/EP)