The relations between Türkiye and Indonesia will even grow further in the upcoming period under the new president-elect that will take over after President Joko Widodo, Jakarta’s Ambassador to Ankara Achmad Rizal Purnama said.

Speaking to Daily Sabah in an exclusive interview, Purnama highlighted that incumbent Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto already has close ties to Türkiye.

"It is important to note that our current minister of defense, who was elected as president, has a very close relationship with Türkiye. He visited Türkiye eight times during his tenure as a defense minister. And in the last five years, during his tenure, our defense cooperation increased very significantly. So, the prospect of our two countries’ bilateral relations will be very bright in my opinion," the ambassador said.

Saying that he did not expect any big changes in Indonesia’s general foreign policy and especially regarding ties with Türkiye, Purnama continued: "Our foreign policy is implemented based on the principle of a ‘free and active foreign policy,’ written in our constitution. So, no leader can go beyond these rules and principles. But of course, every leader has certain priorities that he will put forward at the end of the day."

The ambassador elaborated that the new president’s foreign policy vision will be shaped together with the Foreign Ministry and the new foreign minister once Subianto takes office in October and forms his new Cabinet thereafter.

Purnama mentioned one memory in which he met Widodo before taking the post of ambassador to Türkiye and underlined the necessity of working hard to achieve good results in bilateral ties. "So my president said he sees President Erdoğan as his big brother when I left the country for the mission and said I have a big responsibility."

"We have no other option but to enhance our bilateral relations not only for our two peoples but also for the Muslim Ummah."

Purnama, reiterating that Subianto has "very special relations with Türkiye," said that Ankara could be one of the first capitals to be visited once he takes office. He described Türkiye and Indonesia as two leaders of the global south as the world undergoes difficult times including the war in Gaza. "I think there is a crucial need for the two leaders to meet very soon," he stressed.

Indonesia's Subianto has been elected president of the world's third-biggest democracy, the elections commission announced last week, beating two rivals who have vowed to file legal complaints about the vote. The commission said Subianto garnered nearly 60% of the vote in the Feb. 14 presidential contest, receiving 96 million votes.

"This is the biggest number of votes," the ambassador said. "Even among previous Indonesian elections, President Joko Widodo gained by 85 million votes. It is also the highest in the world, even President Biden was elected by 81 million only."

Describing the election as "peaceful, fair and transparent," Purnama said that Indonesia is highly meticulous in conducting elections. He gave the example that when ballot boxes were set up at Indonesia’s Embassy in Ankara for Indonesians living abroad, even he could not enter the location since the "body which conducts the election in Türkiye is elected by the commission in Jakarta, which is independent of the government."

On the allegations of fraud during elections, Purnama said that at every poll there are contestants who feel disappointed with the result but that this is their legal right and they have three days to challenge the results. He described the process saying that evidence has to be submitted to the constitutional court, which will then decide whether it is valid. However, since the candidate with the second highest number of votes of around 46 million could have to prove the difference of around 50 million, which is the gap with Subianto’s votes, the process might not yield results to reconduct elections.

"In 14 working days, which will be delayed due to bayram holidays next month – so on April 22, the final decision will be made by our Constitutional Court," Purnama emphasized.

‘Trade, below potential’

On the other side, Türkiye also boasts increasing trade relations with Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy and 16th largest economy in the world, which is enjoying around five percent growth annually.

"The trade volume, which is $2.3 billion (TL 73.62 billion) currently, really doesn't reflect our true potential. A market of $280 million, and a market of $86 million combined is slightly more than the 350 million of population, so the trade volume is less than 1% of that."

"We need to dive deeper to determine the challenges. According to my findings, the main challenge is a mental and mindset barrier in our businesspeople. They are so comfortable with their traditional market. We need to break this," Purnama said.

He pointed out that Indonesia’s business community is focusing on trade with their domestic market, neighbors in Southeast Asia as well as Europe and the U.S. while Türkiye focuses traditionally on the European, Middle Eastern and Central Asian markets.

He also reiterated that Indonesia has free trade within the scope of ASEAN, a market of more than 680 million from which Ankara could tremendously benefit.

"The second barrier is that we don't have any trade agreement yet," the ambassador said. "Since 2017, it was agreed that the free trade agreement is to be negotiated and to be concluded very soon, but until now, we are still in the process of negotiation."

Purnama said that the stalemate is in part rooted in a lack of enough will by the Turkish side, the pandemic and problems of trade deficit but that the big picture of an agreement with Indonesia must be grasped.

"We need a lot from Türkiye since it has become an advanced industrial economy. We imported a lot from Europe, from China, the U.S. For example, medical equipment. I personally saw Türkiye produces a lot of things on medical equipment, and the price is low while the quality is so high. But we cannot import from Türkiye because there is a custom."

Purnama said that he has met with more than 200 businesspeople since he started his post to determine the potential and challenges and to convince them to make sure they understand the potential.

The ambassador said that he identified 20 potential products that Türkiye and Indonesia could export to each other, even identifying exactly the names of the exporters, the importers of these products, the competitor countries, and the regulation of the customs.

According to the envoy’s evaluations, potential products include steel, chemistry, textile products, electronics, plastics, processed food and drinks, palm kernel, animal feed, vegetable oil and medical appliances among others that could increase the bilateral trade volume.

He said he would focus on trade, defense, health industries, energy and construction, five areas where Türkiye has big potential. He gave an example of energy, saying both countries rank among the top five geothermal energy countries.

"In the last five months, I'm trying, you know, very hard to meet with all 10 biggest energy companies in Türkiye. I will bring my state-owned companies, they want to invest here in Türkiye, and they are at the final stage, to jointly explore geothermal in Türkiye," Purnama said, indicating that investment of around $600 million-$800 million would be made while the potential promises for more than $2 billion in both countries. He also said Turkish and Indonesian companies could jointly explore energy in Africa.

Defense industry road map

Similarly on defense, the ambassador visited more than 25 companies in Türkiye of all ranges.

"The progress of the defense industry of Ankara in the last 20 years is tremendous. Türkiye should be our strategic partner for our defense industry. We have more than 17 projects ongoing now with Türkiye," Purnama said.

The jointly produced medium tanks KAPLAN of FNSS and PT Pindad have been located close to the new capital in Kalimantan, becoming the guardians of the new city, the envoy pointed out. Indonesia also purchased ANKA drones while in the near future Jakarta is expected to purchase TB2 from Baykar and ATAK helicopters. Collaboration is also possible on Türkiye's first homegrown fifth-generation fighter jet, KAAN, Purnama said.

"Many other projects are now underway and will be realized in the near future."

He also underlined that Indonesia together with Türkiye’s Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) decided on a grand design document, which is a strategic vision of the long-term development of the Indonesian defense industry. Within this scope, steps that Indonesia has to take as well as Turkish assistance, consultancy and areas for potential collaboration will be identified.

Purnama said that strong defense industries in the two countries would also benefit the Muslim world. "We do not want to see another Gaza in other Muslim countries."

New capital

Asked whether Turkish construction companies could play a role in the building of Indonesia’s new capital Nusantara, the ambassador said: "I talked with the authority of the capital and they are preparing projects they think are fit for Türkiye’s construction companies."

"I saw the big potential of the Turkish construction sector, which ranks second after China in construction overseas. You have 42 companies listed among the 250 top-global construction companies but unfortunately, none is operating now in Indonesia. It is time for Turkish construction companies to go to Indonesia," Purnama said, adding that there are ongoing discussions now between a Turkish company to build highways in Indonesia’s Sumatra while the potential exists on a wide range of projects throughout the country.

Indonesia began construction of the new capital in mid-2022 after Widodo announced that Jakarta – the congested current capital that is prone to earthquakes and rapidly sinking into the Java Sea – would be retired from capital status.

Plans for the new capital are grandeur. Officials tout the creation of a futuristic green city centered on forests, parks and food production that utilizes renewable energy resources, "smart" waste management and green buildings.

Solidarity on Gaza

Another area where Ankara and Jakarta collaborate is the ongoing Gaza war. Alongside Türkiye, Indonesia is part of a contact group formed to take international action to stop the conflict in Gaza and help achieve lasting peace.

"Since the beginning of this tragic war in Gaza, we have worked very hard on all fronts hand in hand with Türkiye to push forward a cease-fire – at the U.N. Security Council, general assembly as well as the U.N. human rights council, the International Court of Justice (ICJ)."

Reiterating that the foreign ministers of Türkiye and Indonesia visited several capitals as part of the contact group, Purnama said efforts are ongoing on several platforms.

The two countries also work together in the area of humanitarian aid for Gaza, he added, saying Türkiye and Indonesia push for the Rafah land border with Egypt to be opened to send aid.