Indonesia Strives to Find Middle Ground in Ukraine

BPMI/BEY MACHMUDIN

President Joko Widodo accompanied by Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, during a special interview session with Kompas, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday (29/2/2022).

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Wednesday (29/6/2022) on a peace mission. The meeting at the Mariinsky Palace lasted more than an hour.

Following the meeting, President Jokowi accepted a special interview with Kompas journalist Harry Susilo on Wednesday afternoon at 5:45 p.m. Ukrainian time. The President was accompanied by Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung.

After the interview, President Jokowi, First Lady Iriana and their entourage headed to Kyiv Central Station to return to Poland and continue their journey to Moscow. The following are excerpts from the interview with the President:

Apart from Indonesia wanting to contribute to food issues because it is a member of the Global Crisis Response Group (GCRG), what else has motivated you to go on a peace mission by visiting both Ukraine and Russia?

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Our Constitution plainly [calls for] world order and world peace. First, our Constitution is clear. Second, we have been given a mandate to chair the G20 and have also been appointed by the United Nations a member of the Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance. Our national and international responsibilities are right there.

Previously, I had told the G7 leaders that the G20 concerned only economic issues and must not be dragged into politics. But as of now, it is about economics, and it concerns the most important issue: food. Energy and food. Like it or not, we must be involved.

What did Indonesia propose to lift the blockade of food commodity exports from Ukraine?

The big issue going forward is food. It is a very big problem and can be complex if a solution is not immediately found.

First, wheat production [in Ukraine] is abundant. Now, there is a stock of 22 million tons, with an additional 55 million tons to be harvested. If it cannot be exported, meaning we cannot import it, then it would be a mess. Seventy-seven million tons is a very large amount. Imagine if it could not be exported.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and first lady Mrs Iriana Widodo handed over the aid of medicines and medical devices to the Minister of Health of Ukraine Viktor Liashko (left) and the Director of the Center for Endocrine Science and Surgery, Endocrine Organ and Tissue Transplantation of Ukraine, Dr. Oleksandr Tovkai ( second from left) at the hospital, in Kyiv City, Ukraine, Wednesday (29/6/2022).

Second, if this wheat cannot be exported, then farmers will not be able to plant any more and it will snowball into an uncontainable issue until it becomes something terrible that cannot be resolved.

Does this war [need to be resolved]?

With this war, perhaps [wheat] can be exported if there is a local ceasefire or at least a partial ceasefire. A safe channel from Odessa [Ukraine] to Istanbul [Turkey] is needed to ensure goods can be exported safely.

Because if not, then who will buy it? Everyone is afraid. Buyers, perhaps, are not afraid. But banks, insurance companies – they’re not brave enough. That is, all parties must provide guarantees on safe and secured channels to the concerned countries, Ukraine and Russia. This includes Istanbul, Turkey. Everyone must ensure that the food is safe.

I spoke with President Zelenskyy for more than an hour. We discussed many different scenarios.

If it is not [resolved], there really will be acute food insecurity, which can then lead to acute hunger. That was what we discussed with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. So that is our most important mission. Because what we want through this peace mission is very complicated. It is very complex.

How do you perceive these efforts in the future after speaking with President Zelenskyy?

I spoke with President Zelenskyy for more than an hour. We discussed many different scenarios. We spent over two hours discussing over a meal. But even two hours could not cover it all. Plus, there is more to the story.

BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN/LAILY RACHEV

Tete-a-tete meeting between President Joko Widodo and President Zelenskyy at the Maryinsky Palace, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday (29/6/2022).

So what is the path for peace going forward?

This is what we will convey to President [Vladimir] Putin, that there are issues like this. We hope that he will have wisdom for food issues.

Are food issues the gateway to the road to peace?

Yes, we must try everything to resolve the issue. Energy issues [must be] resolved [because they] have consequences. While it is complex, we must parse these issues one by one. However, the most pressing issue at hand is food.

[Food security] does not concern us only, but all countries. According to our latest calculations, 823 million people were affected by food issues [due to the Russo-Ukrainian war].

If the issue with wheat is not resolved, then the next harvest will follow and then there will be an issue with fertilizer. Here, the main problem is with food because of wheat and fertilizer. If the issue with fertilizer is not resolved, then it will spread to rice. If there is no fertilizer, then farmers cannot plant rice. If they cannot plant rice, then the production will be very small. This then leads to hunger for those who eat rice. Two billion people will be affected by rice issues, especially those in Asia and Latin America.

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The meeting with President Zelenskyy looked relaxed. Were there many relaxing issues discussed?

It was a very serious conversation. We discussed serious issues, but the atmosphere was relaxed. But it was very serious.

What efforts will follow up the meetings with President Zelenskyy and President Putin?

Tomorrow [Thursday] I will meet with President Putin. I will convey the same thing as I did [to Zelenskyy] to find common ground. This is the most important thing of all, finding common ground. To accommodate all interests and find common ground. That is what we want to do. Once there is common ground, then other issues can be more easily addressed. If we can’t resolve even one issue, then how can we go about [the rest].

Ukraine has requested that Indonesia be involved in Ukrainian projects. Are there are follow-up collaborations?

We will first resolve this issue. We will resolve it one at a time. Because this is for reconstruction, it is necessary to resolve the war first, then begin reconstruction. These are the steps.

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.