American Officials Anticipate Normalization between Indonesia and Israel

Now this is a pretty big news story if it turns out to materialize. Normalization between Indonesia and Israel is anticipated as Indonesia seeks OECD membership, with Israel’s consent being a requirement for the process. The OECD is the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. The organization was developed by the US, the UK, France, Germany and other financial powerhouses. The idea is to advance economic growth around the globe and you might be familiar with it for its indexes which measure countries’ financial health using all different kinds of metrics. People like me who need statistics and data might go to their site to look things up, for example.  

The forum has 38 members including Israel and in order for a new nation to be added on, there needs to be a unanimous yes for the nation. Israel, which does not have diplomatic relations with the holy land, rejected the country. Now things are getting even more interesting. The idea of creating normalization between the nations comes amidst efforts to mend diplomatic ties disrupted by the ongoing war between Hamas and Israel. While trade and tourism relations have existed between the countries, formal diplomatic relations have been lacking. The Biden administration initially pursued normalization, but plans were halted due to the Israel-Hamas conflict. The OECD has set conditions for Indonesia’s membership, including establishing diplomatic relations with all member states, including Israel. The OECD, Jerusalem and Indonesia’s capital Jakarta have been apparently working on this deal for months in secrecy. 

Tuesday Israel coordinated Indonesia’s participation in an airdrop relief mission over Gaza which hints at potential warming of ties, though historically, under President Joko Widodo, the country maintained minimal, unofficial contact with Israel. Rumors of normalization have circulated for years, but Indonesia has refrained from formalizing relations until the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, reflecting its staunch support for the Palestinian cause. Still, trade between the two countries has been reported at around US $500 million per year. 

In March, Indonesia’s president denied a report of normalization with Israel. Now, American officials working to bring the nations together say that it’s going to happen. Very interesting story and something I did not think I would see, especially at this time. Indonesia is the biggest Muslim country to exist currently with a sweeping anti-Israel sentiment. In January Indonesia actually used the ICJ OR International Court of Justice to file a claim against Israel and also supported South Africa after they tried Israel for genocide in the court system as well.