FORMER Indonesian Ambassador to the United States, Dino Patti Djalal,\nhas criticised the American and Israeli attacks on Iran and assessed\nPresident Prabowo Subianto\u2019s mediation discourse as unrealistic. He has\nurged Indonesia to adopt a firm stance in accordance with the principles\nof independent and active foreign policy.<\/p>\n
Dino expressed shock and concern over the attacks, particularly\nbecause they occurred during Ramadan and targeted a Muslim-majority\nnation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were all shocked by the American and Israeli attacks on Iran. We\nare especially concerned because this is an attack on an Islamic nation\nduring Ramadan,\u201d said Dino in a video posted on his personal Instagram\naccount, @dinopattidjalal<\/span>, on Sunday (1\nMarch).<\/p>\n Regarding the military strikes by the United States and Israel\nagainst Iran, Dino assessed that the conflict has the potential to be\nprolonged.<\/p>\n He believes that the aim of the attacks is not merely to halt Iran\u2019s\nnuclear capacity, but also to overthrow the government in Tehran.\nVarious instruments will reportedly be employed, ranging from military\nforce, political and economic pressure, to intelligence operations.<\/p>\n \u201cThis war will also draw in outside parties and spread shockwaves\nbeyond Iran\u2019s region,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n He added that Iran possesses significant political and military\nnetworks in the Middle East, so the conflict has the potential to\nexpand. According to Dino, even if a change of government occurs in\nTehran, this does not automatically justify military action from either\na moral or international legal perspective.<\/p>\n Dino further asserted that Iran is the attacked party, not the\nattacking party. He assessed that the failure of negotiations cannot\nserve as justification for the use of military force.<\/p>\n Dino also referenced Oman\u2019s role as a mediator, which had previously\nstated there had been significant progress in negotiations between\nWashington and Tehran.<\/p>\n He warned that resolving the conflict through military force risks\ndisrupting international stability and peace.<\/p>\n Dino also responded to statements from the government suggesting that\nPresident Prabowo Subianto was prepared to fly to Tehran to serve as a\nmediator in the conflict. As an academic and senior diplomat, he\nquestioned the realism of such a notion.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd this is politically, diplomatically and also logistically\nimpossible. This would be political suicide for President Prabowo\ndomestically,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI truly do not know where this remarkable idea came from, for\nPresident Prabowo to fly to Tehran to serve as a mediator in this\ntriangular conflict,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is unrealistic and will not happen. We must be honest about\nthis,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n According to Dino, the United States rarely agrees to be mediated by\na third party in situations of military strikes. He also assessed that\nthere is insufficient level of closeness or trust between the current\nIndonesian Government and Iran to mediate such a major conflict.<\/p>\n \u201cThe ego of the US as a superpower is too high to accept that,\u201d he\nnoted.<\/p>\n Moreover, he assessed it as unlikely that US President Donald Trump\nor US Secretary of State Marco Rubio would be willing to participate in\na mediation scheme in Tehran.<\/p>\n Dino also stated that mediation efforts would require a meeting with\nIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which he described as very\ndifficult politically and diplomatically.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Trump this time does not want Indonesia to interfere,\nbecause his mood at the moment is to overthrow the Iranian government,\u201d\nhe added.<\/p>\n Rather than seeking a role as mediator, Dino has urged Indonesia to\nassert its position clearly and consistently with the principles of\nindependent and active foreign policy and commitment to international\nlaw.<\/p>\n \u201cIn my view, what is most important for Indonesia is not to seek a\nrole as peacemaker in this conflict because it is unrealistic, but\nrather to assert Indonesia\u2019s position clearly, firmly and explicitly. We\nmust be brave in stating what is truly right and what is wrong\nregardless of the risks,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n According to Dino, this step is important to demonstrate that\nIndonesia is a principled nation and not easily disrespected by\nsuperpowers.<\/p>\n He even suggested that President Prabowo consider writing a letter to\nPresident Trump to suspend the deployment of Indonesian peacekeeping\nforces in the International Stabilisation Force (ISF) in Gaza, whilst\nassessing developments in the Middle Eastern situation.<\/p>\n \u201cWe do not want Indonesia\u2019s peacekeeping mission to deviate from the\nISF mandate, even unintentionally,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n Indonesia must avoid the risk of Indonesian forces becoming entangled\nin complications that may arise from the ongoing US-Israel-Iran\ntriangular conflict.<\/p>\n \u201cConsider this carefully and thoroughly, historical validation is far\nmore important than validation from the White House,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dino-patti-djalal-deems-prabowos-mediation-discourse-in-iran-us-israel-conflict-unrealistic-1772369603",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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