Understanding Indonesia's role in the ‘ASEAN Outlook on the Indo‐Pacific’: A role theory approach

Abstract

Following other regional powers, Indonesia announced its own interpretation of the Indo-Pacific concept in 2018. Considering Indonesia's strategic position in the Indo-Pacific, does this announcement indicate the prospects of a more active Indonesian role in the region? This article examines Indonesia's national role conception regarding the Indo-Pacific concept. Drawing from the literature on role theory, particularly on role conception and role location, and by analysing foreign policy narratives espoused by dominant actors in the Indo-Pacific region, this article finds Indonesia's articulation of the Indo-Pacific concept as an example of role location within the new Indo-Pacific structure, particularly in locating Indonesia's 'middle power' role. Dominant actors in the Indo-Pacific have generally accepted Indonesia's Indo-Pacific concept, which shows that Indonesia has managed to live up to expectations befitting of a middle power through its enactment of 'regional leader' and 'bridge-builder' roles.

Emerging Middle Power dan Tantangan Perwujudan Visi Indonesia 2045 di Asia Pasifik: Systematic Review [Emerging Middle Power and Challenges on Realizing Vision of Indonesia 2045 in Asia Pacific: Systematic Review]

“…Upaya Indonesia membentuk tatanan Indo-Pasifik menghadapi tantangan rivalitas Amerika Serikat-Tiongkok memperebutkan pengaruhnya di kawasan 60 . Akan tetapi, dengan memotori ASEAN, Indonesia mampu membentuk tatanan Indo-Pasifik melalui ASEAN outlook to Indo-Pacific 61 . Dengan demikian, ASEAN berperan penting dalam meningkatkan bargaining position Indonesia yang terbatas ruang geraknya sebagai middle power 62 , terutama dikarenakan dependensinya dengan Tiongkok 63 , yang seringkali mengakibatkan inkonsistensi sikap 64 .…”

Indonesia's response to the Belt and Road Initiative and the Indo‐Pacific: A pivotal state's hedging strategy

“…While Mursitama and Ying (2021) use an integrative framework of balancing, bandwagoning, and hedging in exploring Indonesia's strategies towards the BRI, Yeremia (2020) employs the image theory in international relations by investigating Indonesian diplomats and foreign policy scholars' perceptions of China. As for Indonesia's responses to Indo‐Pacific politics, Agastia (2020) employs the role theory for examining Indonesia's national role conception as a middle power within the new Indo‐Pacific structure. This article seeks to contribute to the existing theoretical research on Indonesia's regional diplomacy by offering an integrative examination of the country's strategic reactions to regional geopolitics and their evolving nature of them with a tight conceptual framework.…”

“…A growing number of studies have examined Indonesia's engagement in the BRI, aiming to enunciate the development of and concerns about BRI projects and connections to its national development vision (Damuri et al, 2019;Mursitama & Ying, 2021;Negara et al, 2018Negara et al, , 2021Strangio, 2020). Other studies have examined Indonesia's strategic reactions to Indo-Pacific politics by exploring its role conception and strategic intentions, the country's regional position in the Indo-Pacific, and tangible policy developments (Agastia, 2020;Anwar, 2020;Febrica, 2021;Mubah, 2019;Scott, 2019;Wicaksana, 2021). This article builds on past studies of Indonesia's engagements in the BRI and Indo-Pacific initiatives by compensating for some limitations in them.…”

Role Conception of the Asia-Pacific Middle Powers: Comparative Analysis of Indonesia, South Korea, Australia and Vietnam

“…A growing amount of the literature has also tried to incorporate the notion of role conception in order to understand middle power behaviour (Agastia, 2020; Karim, 2018; Thies & Sari, 2018). Karim (2018) argues that the variations in emerging middle power foreign policy, as well as its determinants, can best be understood by incorporating the growing literature on role theory in international relations.…”