Luhut: Indonesia Must Not Take Sides in Iran–US–Israel War
Head of the National Economic Council Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said Indonesia must tread carefully in determining steps to take in facing the conflict between the United States and Iran. According to Luhut, Indonesia should remain steadfast in upholding the principles of a free and active foreign policy.
Amid competing interests of major powers, the principle of a free and active foreign policy must continue to be the most relevant guide for this nation. Indonesia is not in a position to take sides with any country, Luhut said via his Instagram account, @luhut.pandjaitan, on Friday, 6 March 2026.
The former Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs explained that maintaining friendly relations and respecting friendship with Muslim and developing countries such as Iran is just as important as building mutually advantageous ties with developed nations such as the United States.
This is a principle bequeathed to us by the founding fathers to guard and uphold, Luhut said.
According to him, the tensions between Iran and the United States, which is allied with Israel, represent a dynamic in the Middle East conflict with the potential for lasting impacts, particularly on Indonesia’s economic stability. The reason is that escalation would prolong disruptions to energy supply routes such as those through the Strait of Hormuz.
Not only would there be a direct impact on domestic oil supplies, Luhut said, but the disruption would also affect energy supplies to China, which has long sourced oil from Iran, Venezuela and Russia. If China experiences a crisis, almost all sectors of the Indonesian economy would also be affected. If the Chinese economy is hurt, ours will also be affected, Luhut said.
In this confrontation, Luhut contends that Iran would not be easily defeated even if it must confront both the United States and Israel. He said Iran is a nation that has never been colonised for thousands of years. Various battles in history have demonstrated that the Iranian people are fighters who are not easily defeated.
That resolve was also evident in American strikes that killed several Iranian leaders, including the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Rather than weakening, Iran’s retaliation has intensified.
Therefore, he emphasised that standing in the middle and not leaning towards either side is the most strategic and safest option for Indonesia. So we should not become enemies with either side—America or Iran. There’s no point in that, Luhut said.