US Declares Readiness to Cooperate with Indonesia in Safeguarding Territorial Sovereignty
US Deputy Defence Secretary Elbridge A. Colby has stressed that Indonesia alone has the right to determine the best way to safeguard its sovereignty, and stated that Washington is ready to cooperate with Indonesia in maintaining the integrity of Indonesian territory.
“We greatly respect that and want to work with countries such as Indonesia based on their own perspectives on how to maintain their sovereignty,” Colby said in an online media briefing monitored in Jakarta on Thursday.
Colby said the US is focused on maintaining the balance of power through a combination of military strength and active diplomacy. He assessed that strong relations with the US can benefit countries in the region while strengthening their ability to safeguard their sovereignty.
“There are objectives we want to achieve to maintain that balance of power, but we have no intention whatsoever of weakening or disrupting Indonesia’s sovereignty. On the contrary, we want to strengthen it,” Colby said.
According to Colby, a similar approach is also being applied to Thailand and the Philippines, and applies to Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore even though they were not visited, and he acknowledged he is realistic that cooperation requires a mutually beneficial foundation.
Colby said the primary US interest is to see countries in the region grow strong and able to defend their respective sovereignty and territorial integrity, with the US as a partner underpinning the regional balance of power.
The US Deputy Defence Secretary also said that a strong US presence is in fact aligned with the interests of countries in the region, because without a strong, active and engaged US, the balance of power would not be achieved.
“We hope for the continuation of a peaceful balance of power, which in turn will encourage further economic growth throughout this region,” Colby said.
On 11 August, US Deputy Defence Secretary Elbridge A. Colby met with Indonesian Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, followed by a meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto the next day in Jakarta.
In the meeting between Sjafrie and Colby, the two sides exchanged views on the development of bilateral relations and the implementation of various programmes under the Major Defense Cooperation Partnership (MDCP) framework established on 13 April 2026.