President Prabowo and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Discuss Iran-Israel Military Escalation by Telephone
President Prabowo Subianto of the Republic of Indonesia conducted a high-level conversation with Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), to discuss the increasingly volatile security situation in the Middle East. This diplomatic communication took place via telephone on the evening of Wednesday, 11 March 2026.
According to an official statement from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, both leaders focused on discussing military escalation occurring in the region and its serious implications for regional and global peace. Indonesia, as the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation, demonstrated its active role in reducing tensions in the conflict zone.
During the conversation, President Prabowo Subianto emphasised the urgency of immediately halting all military operations in the Middle East region. Prabowo warned that continued armed confrontation would only damage the security stability that had been built up.
“The Indonesian President emphasised the need to immediately halt military operations in the region and warned that such actions will damage global security and stability,” stated the official statement from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday, 12 March 2026.
The situation in the Middle East reached a critical point after Iranian state television confirmed the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, resulting from Israeli-American air strikes in late February. The loss of this central figure triggered significant anger in Teheran.
In retaliation, Iran launched a series of ballistic missiles and drones towards Israeli territory and American military facilities scattered throughout the Middle East. This escalation forced neighbouring countries to tighten their air defences.
On Tuesday, 10 March 2026, authorities in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates reported that their air defence systems intercepted a number of drones and ballistic missiles that crossed their airspace. These were believed to have been launched from Iranian territory towards strategic targets.
The conversation between Prabowo and MbS signifies the strength of diplomatic relations between Jakarta and Riyadh in confronting the global crisis. Indonesia continues to promote peaceful solutions and consistently advocates for the protection of civilians amid the turmoil of war.
Geopolitical analysts view President Prabowo’s active involvement in this communication as a strategic step to ensure the safety of Indonesian nationals (WNI) in the Gulf region and to maintain the stability of domestic energy prices, which are heavily dependent on the Middle East situation.
The Indonesian Government, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, continues to monitor developments on the ground and is preparing emergency scenarios for Indonesian nationals in conflict-affected regions.