Last update: July 25, 2022
image source,Xinhua
In June 2019, during the G20 summit, Xi Jinping met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Osaka, Japan. Indonesia is the presidency of the G20 this year and plays an important role in coordinating the positions of participating countries.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo visited Beijing on Monday and Tuesday (July 25 and 26) at the invitation of Chinese leader Xi Jinping, becoming the first foreign leader to visit China after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
In 2022, with the promotion of new crown vaccination around the world and the gradual relaxation of epidemic control, the frequency of foreign leaders’ visits will basically return to the level before the epidemic, but China’s “zero policy” has not only greatly restricted the travel of ordinary people, Visits by foreign heads of state have also been basically stopped.
If it is said that the Beijing Winter Olympics in February 2022 was boycotted by the United States and other governments diplomatically, and it is necessary for China to receive foreign heads of state as much as possible in order to create a warm atmosphere for the Olympic Games, then at this time, China has not given up the “zero policy”. , Beijing invites the Indonesian president to visit, what is the consideration?
What is the focus of the China-Indonesia talks?
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said the Indonesian president would meet with Xi and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during his visit to China for “in-depth exchanges of views on bilateral relations and major regional and international issues”.
Wang Wenbin also said that China also looks forward to “further deepening strategic mutual trust and pragmatic cooperation between the two sides, and creating a model of mutual benefit and win-win results for major developing countries in the new era, a model for common development, and a vanguard for South-South cooperation” through President Joko Widodo’s visit.
China’s state media Global Times quoted experts as saying that economic and trade cooperation will be the “most important topic” in talks between the two countries, and that it is also an area where the two sides are most likely to achieve results, as promoting bilateral and regional economic recovery is a top priority .
Widodo had a phone call with Xi Jinping in March. At that time, Chinese media reported that Jokowi said that Indonesia hopes to carry out tripartite cooperation with China to help build Indonesia’s new capital. At the same time, it is hoped that China will continue to support the construction of Indonesia’s “Regional Comprehensive Economic Corridor” and the construction of green industrial parks.
The Indonesian President’s trip to China this time is the first stop of his trip to three countries in East Asia. Widodo will also visit Japan and South Korea.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said on Thursday that the three countries are Indonesia’s “strategic partners in the economic field” and that the upcoming meeting will focus on “strengthening economic cooperation, especially trade and investment.”
China is Indonesia’s largest trading partner, and the bilateral trade volume in 2021 will be about 120 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 58.4%. In the same year, Chinese investment in Indonesia amounted to US$3.2 billion. China has also maintained the status of Indonesia’s largest export destination for several consecutive years.
When announcing Jokowi’s visit to China, the spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs also mentioned that Indonesia will hold the G20 presidency this year, and President Jokowi will communicate with Chinese leaders face-to-face on the G20 summit.
Some analysts believe that one of the purposes of the Indonesian president’s visit may include persuading Chinese leader Xi Jinping to attend a summit in Indonesia in November.
image source,Getty Images
The Indonesian president is the first foreign leader to visit China since the Beijing Winter Olympics in February 2022.
What kind of signal might it send?
Since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic in 2020, China has adhered to a strict “clearing” policy, and has strictly guarded against the capital Beijing.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic, Xi Jinping himself has never traveled abroad, and has always held talks with leaders of other countries or participated in international events by video, including video calls with US President Joe Biden.
Apart from hosting the Winter Olympics, Beijing has not hosted foreign heads alone.
Some analysts believe that the Indonesian President was invited to China this time, and reportedly will have a face-to-face meeting with Xi Jinping, which may also indicate that at least China’s diplomacy has begun to gradually get out of the epidemic. In addition to sending high-level personnel to visit abroad, it has also resumed receiving foreign dignitaries.
What is the background of Jokowi’s visit to China?
In addition to being the rotating chairman of the G20 this year, Indonesia will also serve as the rotating chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) next year, and will be responsible for coordinating major regional and international issues among member countries.
These include the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. G20 members have very different positions on the war: the United States and Western allies sanction Russia for supporting Ukraine, while China and India are reluctant to condemn Russia and do not participate in sanctions and import Russian energy on a large scale; the United States and Western countries do not Putin is expected to attend a summit in Indonesia in November, while China has objected.
China has long stated that it supports Indonesia in hosting the summit, emphasizing that the G20 should focus on economic issues and should not be politicized. “All members have equal status, and no one has the right to split the G20.”
Therefore, how to mediate different positions in the G20, avoid confrontation between China and the United States, and how to coordinate ASEAN members to avoid choosing sides and maintaining unity will all be thorny issues that Indonesia will face in the near future.
Other important regional issues include sovereign disputes in the South China Sea and competition between China and the United States in Asia.
What are the concerns of international public opinion?
Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s upcoming visit to China is closely followed by international media, especially media from Asia-Pacific countries.
The Australian newspaper (The Australian) reported that Jokowi went to “dine together” with Xi Jinping, becoming the first democratic leader to meet a Chinese leader since the diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has left Indonesia in an awkward position over how to keep G20 nations united, as Western nations have threatened to boycott the summit if Putin attends the summit. As a non-aligned country, Indonesia withstood the pressure, but as a compromise, opted to invite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a guest to the summit.
“Indonesia, like the rest of Southeast Asia, is at the center of the Indo-Pacific region, where China and the United States have been vying for influence,” The Jakarta Post reported on President Joko Widodo’s trip to Asia.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Xi Jinping is expected to propose the Australia-UK-US security agreement (AUKUS) when he meets Widodo, “intensifying activities against this agreement involving nuclear submarines”.