India, Indonesia discuss PM Modi’s Jakarta visit, deepen cooperation in defence, maritime security

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono in New Delhi for the 8th India-Indonesia Joint Commission Meeting (JCM), revi...

What Happened

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono in New Delhi for the 8th India-Indonesia Joint Commission Meeting (JCM), reviewing and deepening the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
Discussions covered defence cooperation, maritime security, digital connectivity, trade, pharmaceuticals, food security, infrastructure, and people-to-people ties.
Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to visit Jakarta in the coming weeks — the meeting served as preparatory groundwork to set the agenda for the PM-level summit.
India and Indonesia are in active discussions on a BrahMos cruise missile deal, which would mark a significant step in defence exports to Southeast Asia.
Bilateral trade stood at approximately $28.15 billion in 2024–25; Indonesia is India's second-largest trading partner within ASEAN.
Both sides reaffirmed commitment to ASEAN centrality, the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP), and India's Act East Policy as complementary frameworks.

Static Topic Bridges

India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2018)

India and Indonesia elevated their bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during PM Modi's visit to Jakarta in May 2018. This is one of India's highest-tier bilateral designations, reflecting deep strategic convergence across security, economic, and geopolitical dimensions.

The 2018 partnership concluded a Defence Cooperation Agreement, a Shared Vision for Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, and expanded MoUs in multiple sectors.
The "Shared Vision of India-Indonesia Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific" (2018) was a landmark document articulating common principles: freedom of navigation, respect for UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982), and peaceful resolution of disputes.
The 8th JCM (2026) is the principal institutionalised mechanism for reviewing progress and setting new priorities under this partnership.
Coordinated maritime patrols: The 43rd India-Indonesia Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) — a biannual exercise — was conducted in December 2024, with Indian Navy vessels docking at Sabang Port (Aceh, Indonesia).
BrahMos discussions signal India's ambition to position itself as a defence exporter in Southeast Asia, building on the Philippines BrahMos deal (signed 2022, deliveries ongoing).

Connection to this news: The 8th JCM and PM Modi's upcoming Jakarta visit are milestones in operationalising this 2018 strategic partnership, with maritime security and defence cooperation forming the substantive core.

Act East Policy and India-ASEAN Relations

India's Act East Policy, announced in 2014, replaced the earlier Look East Policy (launched 1991). It represents a more proactive, multi-dimensional engagement with Southeast Asia and East Asia, covering trade, connectivity, security, and cultural ties.

Act East Policy covers India's engagement with ASEAN, East Asia, and the broader Indo-Pacific, emphasising: (a) trade and economic integration, (b) physical and digital connectivity, (c) security and defence cooperation, and (d) people-to-people links.
India-ASEAN relations were elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership at the ASEAN-India Summit in November 2022 — a step above the Strategic Partnership held since 2012.
India participates in ASEAN-led mechanisms including the East Asia Summit (EAS), ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+), and the first ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME) in 2023.
India-ASEAN trade crossed $130 billion in 2023–24. ASEAN is India's fourth-largest trading partner.
Indonesia is ASEAN's largest economy (GDP approximately $1.3 trillion, 2023) and the world's fourth most populous country — making it the anchor of India's ASEAN engagement.

Connection to this news: The India-Indonesia JCM reinforces the operational layer of Act East Policy: bilateral deepening with ASEAN's largest member state is central to India's strategy for regional influence and economic integration.

Indo-Pacific Strategy: Convergence of India's SAGAR and Indonesia's Global Maritime Fulcrum

India and Indonesia share complementary maritime doctrines that underpin their strategic alignment in the Indo-Pacific.

India's SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) doctrine, articulated by PM Modi in 2015, emphasises: collective maritime security, sustainable development of marine resources, respect for international maritime law, and capacity building for smaller maritime states.
Indonesia's Global Maritime Fulcrum (Poros Maritim Dunia) vision, announced by President Joko Widodo in 2014, emphasises Indonesia's identity as a maritime nation at the confluence of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, calling for development of maritime infrastructure, maritime diplomacy, and maritime defence.
Both doctrines are anchored in UNCLOS, 1982 — which provides the legal framework for Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs, 200 nautical miles), continental shelf rights, freedom of navigation, and dispute resolution through ITLOS (International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea).
The South China Sea — where Indonesia's Natuna Islands EEZ overlaps with China's expansive "nine-dash line" claim — is a shared area of strategic concern for India and Indonesia.
India does not have territorial claims in the South China Sea but has strategic interests in freedom of navigation, which is critical for its trade routes (approximately 55% of India's trade passes through the South China Sea).

Connection to this news: Maritime security discussions at the JCM are substantive, not symbolic — both countries have concrete shared interests in Indo-Pacific stability, particularly regarding freedom of navigation and counterbalancing assertive behaviour by major powers.

Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) as a Diplomatic Mechanism

Joint Commission Meetings are the primary institutionalised bilateral diplomatic mechanism between India and Indonesia, held periodically at the Foreign Minister level to review the full spectrum of the relationship.

The JCM structure covers multiple sub-commissions (trade, defence, cultural exchanges, science and technology), each with their own working group meetings between JCMs.
The 8th JCM (2026) follows the 7th JCM held in 2023, reflecting intensifying bilateral engagement.
JCMs produce joint statements that set benchmarks for progress and announce new MoUs, agreements, or cooperation frameworks.
Defence cooperation under the JCM has accelerated since 2018: joint exercises (Garuda Shakti for army, Samudra Shakti for navy), defence technology transfers, and the BrahMos missile discussions.
Pharmaceutical cooperation has become an emerging priority: India is a major supplier of generic medicines to Indonesia, and both are seeking to deepen pharmaceutical manufacturing ties.

Connection to this news: The 8th JCM's outcomes — and the upcoming PM-level visit to Jakarta — will likely produce concrete agreements in defence, trade, and digital connectivity that operationalise the 2018 Comprehensive Strategic Partnership framework.

Key Facts & Data

Bilateral relationship level: Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (since May 2018).
Meeting: 8th India-Indonesia Joint Commission Meeting, New Delhi, June 7, 2026.
Participants: EAM S. Jaishankar and Indonesian FM Sugiono.
Upcoming visit: PM Modi scheduled to visit Jakarta (July 2026).
Bilateral trade (2024–25): $28.15 billion; Indonesia is India's 2nd largest trade partner in ASEAN.
Peak bilateral trade: $38.84 billion (2022–23).
India-ASEAN trade (2023–24): Over $130 billion; ASEAN is India's 4th largest trading partner.
Defence deal under discussion: BrahMos cruise missile system.
Maritime exercise: 43rd India-Indonesia Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT), December 2024.
India's maritime doctrine: SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), 2015.
Indonesia's maritime doctrine: Global Maritime Fulcrum (Poros Maritim Dunia), 2014.
Shared vision document: "Shared Vision of India-Indonesia Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific" (2018).
UNCLOS, 1982: Core legal framework for both countries' maritime claims.
ASEAN centrality: Both countries reaffirmed commitment to ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP).
First ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME): 2023.
India-ASEAN partnership level: Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (elevated November 2022).