Foreign Ministry Speaks Out on Prabowo-FBI Meeting

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemlu) has spoken out regarding the meeting between President Prabowo Subianto and United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel in Jakarta. Kemlu emphasised that a key agenda in the meeting was strengthening cooperation on the return of Indonesian cultural artefacts illegally smuggled abroad. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Vahd Nabyl Achmad Mulachela stated that the repatriation of artefacts from the United States is the result of cross-ministerial and institutional collaboration, as well as the Indonesian Representative in Washington D.C., in coordination with the US Government, particularly the FBI. ‘This repatriation of cultural artefacts from the United States is a cross-ministerial and institutional cooperation, as well as the Representative of the Republic of Indonesia in Washington D.C., which coordinates with the United States Government, particularly the FBI, in combating networks of smuggling and illegal trade in cultural objects,’ he said in a press conference on Thursday (23/7/2026). Nabyl stressed that such cooperation is not new. According to him, Indonesia has long established similar collaborations with various countries to return cultural and historical wealth smuggled abroad. Regarding the details of the returned artefacts, the Foreign Ministry stated that more complete information would be provided by the relevant parties. Previously, Minister of Culture Fadli Zon revealed that Kash Patel personally handed over a number of Indonesian cultural artefacts to President Prabowo Subianto during a courtesy call in Kertanegara, Jakarta, on Wednesday (22/7/2026). The handover was part of a repatriation cooperation between the Indonesian Government and the FBI. ‘He also brought cultural artefacts which are the result of cooperation between the Indonesian government, through the Ministry of Culture, and the FBI, namely the return of cultural objects, cultural artefacts, that were smuggled to the United States illegally and after provenance research or origin tracing was conducted, the objects were then returned,’ said Fadli. Fadli explained that the repatriated artefacts originate from Papua, including the cultural heritage of the Dani tribe, the Asmat tribe, and tribes in the Lake Sentani area. According to him, these objects have high historical value and are an important part of Indonesia’s cultural identity. ‘I think these are very valuable objects because this repatriation process is our effort to restore our cultural sovereignty,’ he said. He also revealed that the FBI has previously assisted Indonesia several times in returning various stolen cultural objects, including bronze statues and artefacts from a number of historical sites. Therefore, the government hopes that cooperation with the FBI in the repatriation and restitution of cultural objects will continue to be strengthened. The government plans to exhibit the repatriated artefacts at the National Museum. This step is expected not only to strengthen Indonesia’s cultural sovereignty but also to enrich public knowledge about the nation’s historical heritage.