Australia and Indonesia: Forging a Stronger Partnership Against Hybrid Threats
The Indo-Pacific region faces a growing array of complex security challenges, with hybrid threats emerging as a significant concern. These threats, encompassing cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, economic coercion, and grey-zone activities, transcend traditional security boundaries and demand a coordinated response. Australia and Indonesia, two key players in the region, recognize the urgency of addressing these challenges and are poised to elevate their security partnership to a new level.
A recent report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) emphasizes the need for Australia and Indonesia to move beyond rhetoric and prioritize practical cooperation in tackling hybrid threats. The 2024 Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) provides a solid foundation for enhanced collaboration, offering avenues for joint training, exercises, and deployments, as well as cooperation in cyber defence, technical exchanges, and scientific collaboration. These joint efforts will be crucial in mitigating the risks posed by hybrid warfare.
While Australia and Indonesia have distinct strategic alignments, with Indonesia upholding its non-aligned stance and Australia maintaining its alliance with the United States, both nations share a common understanding of the real-world consequences of hybrid threats. This shared understanding creates an opportunity for the two countries to forge a more resilient and adaptive partnership, focusing on practical problem-solving rather than abstract notions of strategic convergence.
The DCA provides the necessary tools to achieve this goal. It facilitates joint training, exercises, and deployments, including access to each other’s military bases. Importantly, cooperation extends beyond conventional defence activities to encompass crucial areas such as cyber defence, technical cooperation, and science and technology exchanges, all vital for building resilience against hybrid threats.
To further strengthen their partnership, Australia and Indonesia should consider establishing a bilateral hybrid threat task force. This formal mechanism would facilitate aligned efforts, enabling the sharing of threat assessments, coordinating responses, and bridging military and civilian approaches. Incorporating officials from cyber agencies, foreign ministries, and civil society would ensure a comprehensive whole-of-government and whole-of-society perspective.
Training is a cornerstone of this enhanced partnership. Joint exercises focused on cyber-enabled threats and information warfare are essential. These scenarios are not hypothetical but reflect the evolving nature of conflict in the 21st century. Building the capacity to respond collectively requires ensuring that expertise in hybrid threats is not confined to a select group of defence officials but is shared across institutions.
Furthermore, the DCA promotes deeper personal and institutional links through expanded education and training exchanges. Increasing the number of Indonesian officers studying in Australia, and vice versa, will cultivate a new generation of leaders who understand each other’s strategic cultures, challenges, and capabilities. This mutual understanding is essential for effective long-term cooperation.
Despite the existing structural differences, particularly in their approaches to regional alliances and perceptions of China and Russia, Australia and Indonesia should not allow these differences to hinder pragmatic collaboration. Instead, focusing on shared vulnerabilities to hybrid threats provides a pathway to maintaining a relationship grounded in practical results.
The evolving security landscape demands that Australia and Indonesia move beyond rhetoric and embrace concrete action. The DCA serves as a robust starting point, but its full potential will only be realized if both countries commit to joint action, build trust across institutions, and recognize hybrid threats not as a niche concern but as a defining feature of the current security environment.
Expanding cooperation to include the Philippines in joint military exercises could further enhance regional security. This trilateral approach, without necessitating new formal commitments, could significantly improve naval interoperability, maritime domain awareness, and demonstrate a shared commitment to resisting coercive actions, particularly in the South China Sea.
Ultimately, the success of the DCA hinges on the ability of both Australia and Indonesia to navigate their differing aspirations, motivations, and strategic outlooks in a rapidly evolving and increasingly complex global security environment. The shared commitment to addressing hybrid threats provides a strong foundation for a more resilient and effective partnership, contributing significantly to regional stability and security.
