Foreign Ministry Strategic Board Begins Exploring Alternative to BoP Membership

Jakarta – The Indonesian Foreign Ministry is currently designing a substitute for Indonesia’s membership in the Board of Peace (BoP). This follows mounting uncertainty regarding the legitimacy and continuation of the council, particularly after two of its members, the United States and Israel, conducted illegal attacks on Iran.

“This has already been decided to suspend the BoP agenda. So looking at this, it means we must substitute it with another role,” stated Muhammad Takdir, Head of the Foreign Ministry’s Strategic Policy Board (BSKLN), during a seminar held by the Department of International Relations at the University of Indonesia’s Faculty of Social and Political Sciences on Thursday 12 March 2026.

Among the proposals being discussed internally at the Foreign Ministry is the establishment of a special envoy for Palestine. This special envoy would subsequently coordinate the distribution of all aid from Indonesia to Gaza.

“This step is actually an addition to the role previously carried out by Retno by appointing an honorary consul in Ramallah, which is hoped to provide assistance,” said Muhammad Takdir.

This study will subsequently be submitted to the foreign minister and then President Prabowo Subianto for a decision on its implementation. “Hopefully when this is presented, it can strengthen the channel to provide a more substantial role in this issue,” he said.

Muhammad Takdir revealed that President Prabowo is also opening alternative channels regarding Indonesia’s role in defending Palestine. One such measure involves giving scope to former Vice President Jusuf Kalla. In addition to being a capable peace broker, Jusuf Kalla is also known to have connections with Hamas political leaders.

He acknowledged that the attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran represent a dynamic that strengthens criticism of Indonesia’s membership in the BoP. “Generally, I think the public has a perspective that we must consider as one of the considerations in improving what might appear to be insufficiently acceptable to the general public regarding the BoP,” he said.

He emphasised that if one wishes to resolve the Palestinian issue, the approach must also be intelligent. “Because what we are facing is also intelligent. This means the strategy must have levels that are at least comparable to the level of intelligence we are confronting.”

Muhammad Takdir acknowledged that on the surface, Indonesia’s membership in the BoP appears to have many shortcomings. Particularly since the partners are those who have historically been perceived as untrustworthy.

Nevertheless, he also assumed that there are matters behind the scenes that have not been fully communicated to the public for various reasons. “So the point is, it is important for the public to give the current government the benefit of the doubt,” he said, noting that the merits and drawbacks of the BoP must still be assessed by how matters develop in the future.