VIVAnews - Former US President George W Bush left the legacy of bad diplomatic relationship between the US and Islamic countries. Therefore, it would be hardly surprising to see Barack Obama extends his proximity to Indonesia. Obama needs Indonesia because of its big influence in South East Asia and the religion.
“Obama needs Indonesia to be America’s partner in order to improve the country’s image in the Islamic world,” the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) researcher, Siswanto at a discussion entitled ‘Indonesia-US relations: Issues and Prospects’ at LIPI office in Jakarta on Thursday, March 11.
Indonesia was chosen because it is the country with the biggest Muslim populations in the world. Indonesia is also active in building international social relations, especially in peacekeeping. “Indonesia is one of the countries that are often trusted to safeguard conflicting countries by the UN,” he said.
The US actually has a good relationship with Islamic countries in Middle East such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordania, Egypt and Lebanon. However, things have become intense since a conflict broke out in Middle East during Bush’s governance.
“Obama wants the US to regain its acceptance in the Islamic world to play its role in the reconciliation process in Middle East,” Siswanto said.
He also assumes one of Obama’s big achievements is creating peace in the region and it could be continued by clearing the US image.
The US needs Indonesia as its strategic partner in counter-terrorism. During Bush’s administration, America employs military strategy in the fight against terrorism. But, along the way, Bush shifted his strategy by turning into diplomatic system.
This is the strategy that was later brought along by Obama. The latest attempt was done by Foreign Affairs Minister Hillary Clinton. During her visit to Indonesia, Hillary came to Islamic elementary schools and handed out assistance to Islamic boarding schools. “This could be US diplomacy to ease the terror,” he said.
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Translated by: Nataya Ermanti
