Indonesia and Malaysia recently began talks about their shared border near Indonesia’s West Kalimantan province, according to an Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman. In an email interview, Dave McRae, a research fellow in the East Asia Program at the Lowy Institute for International Policy, discussed Indonesia-Malaysia relations.
WPR: What is the recent history of Indonesia-Malaysia relations?
Dave McRae: Recent Indonesia-Malaysia relations have featured regular public and diplomatic controversies, but the relationship is nevertheless underpinned by solid economic ties and the routine business of bilateral cooperation. A broad range of issues have spurred tensions between Indonesia and Malaysia. The countries’ navies have periodically shadowboxed around the disputed Ambalat maritime blocks, believed to contain oil and gas reserves. Indonesia temporarily imposed a moratorium on its domestic workers travelling to Malaysia this year; in the past, Malaysia has deported Indonesian migrant workers en masse, giving rise to anti-Malaysian sentiment in Indonesia. Other issues affecting relations have included the disputed ownership of cultural products, smoke clouds from forest fires and even the use of laser pointers to distract Indonesian players in the final of a Southeast Asian soccer tournament.