January 6, 2025, Indonesia being officially incorporated as a full member of BRICS, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. It marks a crucial shift in Indonesia's foreign policy to counter a growing complex global geopolitical landscape. Hence, a critical question comes to mind: Does Indonesia's membership in BRICS augment or erode its commitment to ASEAN, which remains the key organization for collaboration within Southeast Asia?
By joining BRICS, Indonesia obtains a stronger platform from which to project the voices of developing counties and the Global South globally. Membership here strengthens Indonesia's ability to press its case for reforms to international financial institutions, including the IMF and World Bank, which have been criticized as having poor representation of developing countries' interests. With backing from other BRICS members, who are known as emerging economic giants, Indonesia becomes better placed to shape a global governance structure that emphasizes equity and inclusivity, even as it pushes a development agenda that promotes global financial stability. The benefits generated by association with BRICS could also be ideally utilized within the region, especially with reference to ASEAN, hence allowing Indonesia to be a central player within ASEAN to synchronize its goals with those of other major global powers. In so doing, Indonesia's diplomatic influence becomes better to construct alliances and achieve a political and economic balance within the region, even as it continually pushes for integration and solidarity within developing countries. In conclusion, membership within BRICS serves to not just multiply Indonesia's influence globally but to expand its ability to influence policy formulation to achieve equity and global inclusivity.
Indonesia's membership in BRICS represents the fulfillment of the country's commitment to a foreign policy of balance between autonomy and active engagement. This contention is posited in Article 3 of Law No. 37/1999 dealing with Foreign Relations, which reads, "Foreign policy holds the free and active principle, which is embedded in the national interest." This provision mandates that Indonesia's foreign policy is within the realm of freedom and active measures in support of national interests. By "free," it is meant that Indonesia does not affiliate itself with particular political blocs or alliances, thus maintaining its autonomy and freedom to chart its foreign policy. On the other hand, by "active," it means that Indonesia affirms its participation in numerous international diplomatic endeavors intended to promote global peace and enhance its national interests on the global level. With this understanding, Indonesia's membership in BRICS not only aids in its strategic positioning during global changes but also represents its determination to engage in constructive collaboration among developing nations and resolve global issues for national well-being. This membership represents Indonesia's foreign policy of less dependency on others while remaining sensitive to global developments, where freedom and action are necessarily tested as ultimate guiding principles within the sphere of Indonesia's international affairs.
This principle was first enunciated by Mohammad Hatta, Indonesia's first Vice President, in his speech entitled "Rowing Between Two Reefs" delivered on 2 September 1948. The metaphor explains Indonesia's position, suggesting a path that is independent and cautious in the midst of the existing tensions between the two major global blocs of the time, i.e., the Western Bloc dominated by the United States and the Eastern Bloc dominated by the Soviet Union, during the Cold War era. The phrase "rowing between two reefs" refers to the effort of a country to maintain its sovereignty and interests without allying itself with any particular global power. This idea forms the basis for the foundation of the principle of active and free participation, which involves freedom from loyalty to any major world bloc as well as a positive commitment to the promotion of global peace, justice, and cooperation. This principle implies that Indonesia does not identify with a particular bloc; instead, it takes an active stance on various forums to promote both national and global interests. Thus, this may increase Indonesia's ability to play a neutral role and an effective mediator within ASEAN.
Indonesia's membership in BRICS is a chance to access a wider and more extensive market beyond its traditional partners. The membership supports the relaxation of dependence on any one or selective country and a narrow coalition of countries, thus ensuring long-term economic security. The diversification is expected to bring benefits to other ASEAN countries by increasing trade and investment links and helping to open up BRICS, thus making Indonesia a crucial intermediary. BRICS also presents a platform for joint actions to address global challenges that include climate change, food security, and public health issues. Indonesia will be able to bring ASEAN experience and priorities to the BRICS agenda while, at the same time, using BRICS collaboration to address specific regional goals within ASEAN.
Cooperation between BRICS countries provides Indonesia with opportunities for trade and investments, besides supporting a balanced economic development path. The strengthening of economic cooperation allows Indonesia to reduce reliance on investments and markets connected to developed nations. The cooperation provides Indonesia with developing country economic unity, with a focus on mutual interests. The major elements behind this endeavor are global supply chains diversification, increased intra-BRICS trade, and investments directed toward infrastructure development and sustainability. The cooperation represents a counter-strategy, possibly helping to reduce effects from global economic turbulence, often focused on Western nations. Indonesia benefits with a development of a relatively more independent and stable economic platform to cope with changing geopolitical situations.
Additionally, Indonesia's active involvement in international collaborative platforms provides further channels through which it can shape international policy paradigms. In taking such a stance, Indonesia stands to help developing countries, especially those within the ASEAN context, and work toward creating a fair-centered system of international governance. Internationally, Indonesia plays a central role with reference to policymaking within key sectors including climate change, energy policy, and sustainable development. This manner of international cooperation provides Indonesia with increased market access globally for exporting its products. In turn, this not only strengthens Indonesia's comparative trade advantage but also shows a diversification of its overseas market areas. Nevertheless, the current international challenges associated with pandemics, food safety, and financial stability serve to highlight a demand for improved cooperation between countries. Greater transnational cooperation prepares Indonesia to meet collective global challenges while, at the same time, solidifying its position within a wider and more inclusive international context.
The broad integration of Indonesia within the BRICS system has wider strategic implications for its positioning and role within the Southeast Asian region, especially in terms of its long-term commitments and undertakings as a member of ASEAN. The widening agenda and interests of BRICS can lead to possible overlaps or even contradictions with the primary goals of the ASEAN coalition. The situation poses an opportunity cost to Indonesia, which needs to express its foreign policy agenda in a way that balances its multilateral undertakings with the varied expectations and undertakings associated with both BRICS and ASEAN. Additionally, given that the primary issues confronting BRICS are essentially directed towards raising stakes on the scale of influential global powers like the United States and China—often taking a different tack from the foreign policy options of many ASEAN member states that have divergent interests and orientations—Indonesia risks facing regional diplomatic pressure. Indonesia therefore needs to proceed cautiously in implementing its mandate to uphold neutrality and to suppress the development of perceptions of bias or overt support for the BRICS agenda. The strategy is crucial in developing consensus and trust between ASEAN member states, ensuring that Indonesia's membership in both organizations remains synergistic and non-detrimental. Indonesia is likely to continue to advance the cause of an inclusive and integrated diplomatic ethos, executing both extraregional and regional axes with a deft maneuver to advance political and economic stability in Southeast Asia.
The diverse political architectures and ideological perspectives customary among the BRICS nations—the Republics of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—form significant factors likely to shape the character of their collaborative relationships. Specifically, India, Brazil, and South Africa are operating democracies, unlike Russia's and China's authoritarian regimes. The foundational disparities hold the potential to frustrate coordination of agreed interests and generate a divergent policy agenda, considering that democracies tend to favor disclosure and protection of human rights. Authoritarian regimes, however, tend to give priority to national interests that are largely being interpreted by centralized authorities. If Indonesia were to consider further involvement with BRICS, these differences might generate domestic opposition. Thus, Indonesian policymakers should exercise caution to maintain the important tenets of its active and liberal foreign policy, as well as its democratic values.
The integration of Indonesia into BRICS does not automatically contradict its membership in ASEAN as long as this integration is managed under a careful and balanced diplomatic framework. Indeed, concurrent strategic involvement by both sides will allow Indonesia to better contribute to developing countries' interests, thus encouraging movements for regional integration. By continuing with its independent and initiative foreign policy, Indonesia is well-positioned to navigate both international and regional agendas, thus strengthening the role of ASEAN in regional cooperation. The greatest challenge facing Indonesia is its capacity to maintain continuity, inclusivity, and responsiveness to changing geopolitical environments, while being true to its democratic values and regional commitments, which underlie its foreign policy.
