Foreign Ministry: US Overflight Clearance Proposal Must Consider Sovereignty and Active Independent Foreign Policy
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemlu) has stated that the United States’ proposal for overflight clearance must be examined carefully, taking into account national sovereignty and active independent foreign policy.
“And its mechanisms, regulations, and various details still need to be carefully reviewed, certainly placing our national interests, our airspace sovereignty, and our principle of active independent foreign policy as the primary foundation,” said Kemlu Spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang at the Kemlu office in Jakarta on Thursday (16 April 2026).
“It is still under consideration within the Indonesian government,” she added.
Head of the Defence Information Bureau of the Kemhan Secretariat General, Brigadier General TNI Rico Ricardo Sirait, confirmed that this responds to the developing public issues regarding Indonesia-US defence cooperation.
“That (the US aircraft flight permission agreement) is not part of the MDCP,” said Rico to reporters on Tuesday (14 April 2026).
The Ministry of Defence explained that the Letter of Intent (LoI) or statement of intent regarding overflight clearance is a proposal from the US side and is currently in the stage of internal study by the Indonesian government.
“In the discussion process, Indonesia has made several important adjustments and emphasised that the document is non-binding, not automatically applicable, and still requires further discussion through applicable technical mechanisms and national procedures,” said Rico.
The meeting in question discussed strengthening defence cooperation within the framework of bilateral relations.
Rico emphasised that this meeting is based on principles of mutual respect, mutual trust, and mutual benefit.
From that meeting, both countries agreed to enhance cooperation to the MDCP level, which was formalised through a joint statement on 13 April 2026.
In addition, cooperation also includes strengthening interpersonal defence relations between the two countries.
The Ministry of Defence views this cooperation as an opportunity to strengthen national defence capacity, while still prioritising active independent foreign policy and respect for state sovereignty.