Middle East Conflict Prompts Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri Wardhana to Target Southeast Asian Tourists
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.COM - The conflict in the Middle East is affecting the global travel and tourism sector. In response to the situation, Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri Wardhana said Indonesia would strengthen its regional tourism market by targeting foreign visitors from Southeast Asia and Oceania.
‘The geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East cannot be denied, and these dynamics may impact the number of foreign visitors and also foreign exchange,’ Widiyanti said at the press conference for the National Coordination Meeting on Tourism (Rakornas Pariwisata) in Jakarta Pusat, Wednesday (20 May 2026).
Widiyanti explained that this strategy is intended to increase the number of foreign visitors while also filling the shortfall of visitors from the Middle East.
Previously, Widiyanti reported that the war arising from the United States–Israel conflict against Iran has caused Indonesia to lose potential foreign exchange amounting to Rp 2.04 trillion. The conflict led to 770 flights to Indonesia being cancelled between 28 February and 28 March 2026, reducing the number of long-haul and high-spending tourists who wanted to come to Indonesia, according to Kompas.com, Wednesday (1 April 2026).
She said that if the situation persists until the end of the year, there is potential for 1.44–1.68 million foreign visitors and foreign exchange losses of Rp 48.3 trillion–Rp 56.5 trillion.
On the other hand, Widiyanti remains committed to achieving a target of 16–17.6 million foreign visitor arrivals in 2026.
Currently, Widiyanti said, foreign visitors are increasingly seeking unique, personalised travel experiences of high quality.
In addition, foreign visitors are becoming more aware of the importance of sustainable tourism that must be addressed collectively, from tourism operators, associations, and the government.
Meanwhile, Widiyanti added that tourism receipts and the number of domestic travel (wisnus) in 2025 were recorded as the highest in history. ‘The historic tourism receipts reached US$18.27 billion, or equivalent to Rp 305.47 trillion,’ Widiyanti said.
In terms of domestic travel (wisnus) in 2025, there were 1.2 billion trips, up 17.6 percent from the previous year.