By DONI TANI/ Staff Writer
January 9, 2025 at 17:34 JST
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba arrives at his office in Tokyo on Jan. 9 before departing for a trip to Malaysia and Indonesia. (Takeshi Iwashita)
Aiming to strengthen relations with key Southeast Asian neighbors and trading partners, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba embarked on a four-day trip to Malaysia and Indonesia on Jan. 9.
The visits come amid China’s increasing maritime presence in the region.
During the trip, Ishiba will meet with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Jan. 10 and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto the following day.
“In today’s increasingly uncertain global community, our relationship with Southeast Asian countries is more important than ever,” Ishiba said before his departure.
“Both Malaysia and Indonesia are key energy suppliers for Japan, and we aim to ensure a stable supply from them while supporting their impressive economic growth,” he added.
This marks Ishiba's first diplomatic trip outside a multilateral setting since taking office in October.
Malaysia is serving as the chair of ASEAN this year, while Indonesia is a member of the Group of 20. Both countries are key players among the emerging nations of the Global South.
During the meetings, the leaders are expected to focus on strengthening maritime security cooperation and advancing economic cooperation, with an emphasis on decarbonization initiatives.
Japan has been strengthening security ties with Southeast Asian maritime nations, and both Malaysia and Indonesia are recipients of Japan’s Official Security Assistance (OSA) initiative, which includes the provision of defense equipment.
Ishiba’s visit to Indonesia follows recent developments on bilateral relations.
Defense Minister Gen Nakatani met with his Indonesian counterpart on Jan. 7 in Jakarta, agreeing that defense officials from both countries would begin discussions on maritime security cooperation.
Before taking office in October, Prabowo served as defense minister, working to strengthen security ties with Japan.
In the summit with Prabowo, Ishiba is expected to pledge the provision of high-speed patrol boats as part of the OSA initiative.
The two leaders will also discuss the joint development of vessels based on Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyers.
(Mizuki Sato also contributed to this article.)
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