Australia, Indonesia seal landmark security agreement in Jakarta

Indonesia and Australia have signed a new bilateral security treaty aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two neighbouring countries, whose relationship has historically experienced periods of tension.

The agreement was signed on February 6 in Jakarta, three months after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced in Sydney that negotiations on the pact had been substantively completed, as per US media reports.

Both leaders said the new treaty builds on earlier security arrangements signed in 1995 and 2006, reflecting a shared goal of deepening defence and strategic ties.

Ahead of his arrival in the Indonesian capital late Thursday, Albanese described the agreement as a “watershed moment” in relations with Australia’s closest major neighbour. In a statement, he said the pact significantly expands existing security and defence cooperation and demonstrates that the bilateral relationship is “as strong as it has ever been.”

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who is accompanying Albanese on the visit, called the treaty the most important development in the partnership in the past three decades.

Analysts noted that the agreement has taken on greater importance for Australia amid rising regional tensions involving China. At the same time, the new treaty is expected to mirror key elements of a 1995 security pact signed by then Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating and Indonesia’s former authoritarian leader Suharto, who was Prabowo’s father-in-law.

That earlier agreement committed both countries to consult on security matters and respond jointly to challenges. However, Indonesia terminated the pact four years later after Australia led a peacekeeping mission in East Timor. Relations gradually improved in the following years, leading to the signing of the Lombok Treaty in 2006, which was later expanded in 2014.

Albanese’s office said the current visit marks his fifth official trip to Indonesia and forms part of a broader effort to extend cooperation beyond security into areas such as trade, investment, education and development.

The Australian prime minister is scheduled to hold meetings with President Prabowo and other Indonesian officials through Sunday, February 8, before returning home.

Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 280 million people, is frequently described as one of Australia’s most important neighbours and strategic partners. However, bilateral relations have seen repeated strains. Past disputes have included allegations that Australia’s signals intelligence agency wiretapped the private communications of former Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, his wife, and senior officials, as well as tensions over Indonesia’s execution of Australian drug traffickers and ongoing issues related to people smuggling.

By Tamilla Hasanova