Prabowo Opens Door to Dialogue with Iran

President Prabowo Subianto has opened the possibility of dialogue with various parties involved in the conflict in the Middle East, including Iran, as part of efforts to promote regional peace. The stance was announced during a gathering with kyai and leaders of Islamist community organisations at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta on Thursday evening (5 March).

The meeting also served as a forum for discussion on developments in the Middle East conflict, which are seen as potentially triggering broader tensions.

Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning Nusron Wahid said President Prabowo is considering direct diplomacy steps, including opening channels of communication with Iran as part of mediation efforts.

“Principally, the President wants there to be a meeting with Iran to act as a mediator and for Iran to open itself, and then the steps taken by the President have received support from several Middle Eastern and other Muslim countries including Pakistan, and also from the UAE,” he told reporters.

According to him, Prabowo together with a number of other state leaders share the same interest in preventing the conflict in the region from widening further.

“In essence, the President, along with eight or seven leaders of countries included in the group of eight, desires peace. Let the war not drag on, especially in Iran or the Gulf region and so on,” he added.

Nahdlatul Ulama Chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf described the move as evidence of Prabowo’s seriousness in pushing for resolution of the Middle East conflict through diplomacy.

“The President emphasised his commitment; he will do whatever is necessary to contribute to peace and to the resolution of the issues, especially since the resolution of the Middle East conflict today will be quite directly linked to our own domestic interests,” Staquf said.

He also noted that Indonesia’s position is relatively accepted by the various warring parties, thereby potentially opening space for wider communication in the mediation process.

“Praise be to God, Indonesia in this regard, President Prabowo Subianto is an actor accepted by all sides, thus having the opportunity to act as a mediator of communication among the involved parties,” he concluded.