JakartaPost/Tempo-Mar 4, 2026
As the war against Iran launched by the United States and Israel rages on, pressure has been growing domestically for Indonesia to withdraw from the US-led Board of Peace, with Islamic communities and lawmakers questioning the body’s commitment to peace in the region. The conflict in the Middle East continues to expand with Iran firing a barrage of missiles at neighboring Gulf states, retaliation against a coordinated missile strike launched by the US and Israel on Tehran and other Iranian cities on Feb. 28 that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The war has garnered attention in Indonesia, which under President Prabowo Subianto has been intensifying engagement with the US through the bilateral Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) and the Board of Peace for post-war reconstruction in Gaza. But Indonesia’s muted response to the war, a “deep regret” against the escalation as mentioned in a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, has garnered a backlash, with House of Representatives lawmaker Oleh Soleh noting the lack of condemnation of the US and Israel for triggering the conflict. “I urge the government to be at the forefront in pushing for sanctions against Israel and the US,” the National Awakening Party (PKB) lawmaker of House Commission I overseeing foreign affairs said on Tuesday, as quoted by Tempo.co. Fellow Commission I lawmaker, TB Hasanuddin of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), concurred, calling on Indonesia to promptly leave the Board of Peace to safeguard the country’s free and active foreign policy approach and prevent any indications of tolerating aggression against another sovereign state. Read more at:
