Indonesia’s foreign ministry urges caution over US military overflight proposal

JAKARTA - Indonesia’s foreign ministry has warned the defence ministry in a letter that an American proposal to give its military “blanket” permission to fly over Indonesian territory risked entangling Jakarta in potential South China Sea conflicts, sources said.

The letter, marked as urgent and confidential, was delivered in early April ahead of a meeting of Defence Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin and his US counterpart Pete Hegseth in Washington on April 13, according to two Indonesian sources with knowledge of the matter.

The letter has not been previously reported and it urged the defence ministry to delay any final agreement with Washington. It is not clear if the overflight proposal was discussed by Mr Hegseth and Mr Sjafrie.

The two Indonesian sources said the proposal had been slated to be signed at the meeting on April 13.

A Pentagon statement that followed the meeting said the two countries established a major defence cooperation partnership and listed a number of ways in which the two countries would build defence ties, but did not refer to overflights.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that just because the overflights were not mentioned in the statement did not mean they were not discussed in private.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Indonesia’s defence ministry did not respond to a Reuters question on whether the proposal was discussed between the two, but said the US proposal was being carefully reviewed by Jakarta, which had made a number of adjustments keeping in mind the country’s sovereignty and national interests.

Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is strategically located on the southern entry point of the South China Sea where it controls the Natuna Islands, and balances close ties with both China and the United States.

China claims sovereignty over almost all the South China Sea – a waterway carrying more than US$3 trillion (S$3.8 trillion) in annual commerce – despite overlapping claims by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.

Risks

The letter from the foreign ministry said the US proposal should be treated with caution because it would allow Washington to maximise surveillance and reconnaissance using Indonesian waters and territory, and could affect relations with other strategic partners in the region, including China.

It said an agreement with the US would give “the impression that Indonesia is involved in an alliance with the implication of increased national security risks because it places Indonesia as a potential target in a regional conflict situation”.

It noted that a number of US military aircraft had carried out surveillance operations in the South China Sea on 18 occasions between January 2024 to April 2025, which constituted a violation of Indonesia’s territorial waters and airspace.

Indonesia’s protests regarding this operation have never received a proper response from the US, it added.

Spokespersons for Indonesia’s foreign and defence ministries, as well as the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the reservations raised by the Indonesian foreign ministry.

Indonesia has a non-aligned foreign policy and President Prabowo Subianto has vowed to befriend all countries.

Indonesia is a key member of US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace initiative, and has committed the largest contingent of troops for the body’s proposed stabilisation force in Gaza.

He has also remained close to Beijing. His first foreign visit as president in 2024 was to Beijing and he attended a military parade hosted by President Xi Jinping in late 2025, being photographed with US adversaries Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The US and Australia joined the Philippines for their second joint maritime exercises in the South China Sea in 2026, amid tensions with China in the disputed waterway. REUTERS