Cabinet Secretary Teddy's Hot Mic Moment: 'Was I Invited Just as a Decoration?'
Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya’s voice was inadvertently picked up during a press conference on the reciprocal agreement between Indonesia and the United States. After the briefing concluded, Teddy was heard remarking that his presence at the event had been merely as “decoration”.
The moment was captured during a press conference broadcast live from Washington D.C., United States, on Thursday, 19 February 2026 local time, via the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.
During the live broadcast, Teddy’s voice could be heard as he whispered to Investment and Downstream Industries Minister Rosan Perkasa Roeslani.
The event featured four speakers: Teddy, Rosan, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, and Indonesian Ambassador to the US Dwisuryo Indroyono Soesilo. Airlangga and Rosan proceeded to outline the results of the trade agreement between Indonesia and the United States, with Dwisuryo also taking a turn to speak.
Following the presentations and question-and-answer session, Airlangga closed the press conference. Shortly afterwards, Teddy was seen turning towards Rosan, who had risen from his seat. The two spoke behind Airlangga.
Teddy’s words were clearly audible on the broadcast. He was heard saying: “Was I invited here just to be put on display?”
Rosan, however, appeared not to hear Teddy’s remark, prompting the Cabinet Secretary to repeat himself. The remainder of their conversation was not captured, as the live broadcast ended immediately afterwards.
Tempo contacted both Teddy and Rosan for confirmation, but as of the time of publication, neither had responded.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and United States President Donald Trump signed a reciprocal trade agreement in Washington D.C. on Thursday, 19 February 2026 local time. The signing formalised the imposition of a 19 per cent tariff on Indonesian products exported to the US. The bilateral meeting between the two heads of state lasted approximately 30 minutes following the Board of Peace proceedings.