Relations between Türkiye and Indonesia

Türkiye and Indonesia enjoy close and multifaceted relations, with a wide range of opportunities for further cooperation. Indonesia, which is the world’s third largest democracy, is also the most populous Muslim-majority country and occupies a strategic location between the Indian and the Pacific Oceans.

During the 16^thcentury, the Sultanate of Aceh had requested the Ottoman Empire’s assistance against the Portuguese aggression. Ottoman support to Aceh back then marks the beginning of official relations between two countries.

Türkiye was one of the first nations that recognized Indonesia’s independence. Diplomatic relations were established in 1950 and the Turkish Embassy in Jakarta opened on 10 April 1957.

Following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster, the then-Prime Minister H.E. Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited the disaster-hit Banda Aceh region of Indonesia on 6-7 February 2005.

With the increase of mutual high-level visits since 2004, the bilateral relations gained a new momentum and both countries decided to upgrade their ties to a strategic partnership. H.E. Mr. Abdullah Gül, 11^thPresident of Türkiye, and H.E. Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, 6^thPresident of Indonesia, signed the joint declaration titled “Türkiye and Indonesia: Towards an Enhanced Partnership in a New World Setting” in Jakarta in April 2011.

During the visit of H.E. President Erdoğan to Indonesia in August 2015, the Turkish-Indonesia Business Forum was held and a Memorandum of Understanding, with a view to strengthen bilateral relations in the fields of trade, investments and technology, was signed between the Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN).The official visit of H.E. Mr. President Joko Widodo to Türkiye in July 2017 has brought new perspectives to our cooperation, especially in the spheres of trade, health care, energy and defence industry.

Establishment of High Level Strategic Cooperation Council between Türkiye and Indonesia on 14 November 2022, during the visit of H.E. Mr. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Bali, Indonesia on the occasion of G20 Leaders Summit was an important step in furthering our relations.

H.E. Minister for Foreign Affairs of Republic of Türkiye H.E. Mr. Hakan Fidan has paid an official visit to Jakarta on 13-15 July 2023. Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia Retno Marsudi visited Türkiye between 1-3 May 2024.

Türkiye and Indonesia closely cooperate in a number of international organizations and fora, like the UN, OIC, G-20, D-8, and MIKTA. Indonesia is one of the founding members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Since July 2017 Türkiye is a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN, and since 2010 the Turkish Embassy in Jakarta has been accredited to ASEAN.

Indonesia is the largest economy in Southeast Asia, and projected to become one of the top ten global economies by 2030. Indonesia’s dynamic population, growing middle-class and strong economic potential serve as a firm basis for further developing our bilateral trade relations.

Currently some 7000 Indonesian citizens reside in Türkiye, while some 2250 Turkish citizens have their permanent residency in Indonesia. Turkish government has hitherto allocated more than 1000 education scholarships to Indonesian citizens.

In the 2023-2024 academic year, Türkiye has granted a total of 75 scholarships to Indonesian students.