Profile Of Tony Blair, Former British PM, Has Special Relations With Indonesia

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. (Photo: Doc. Ministry of SOEs)

YOGYAKARTA - Indonesia received a special visit from Tony Blair, the former British Prime Minister (PM) for several days. One of the important figures in England held a meeting with a number of Indonesian ministers to discuss various matters related to strategic projects, investments, development, and others. What is the profile of Tony Blair and his relationship with Indonesia like?

Tony Blair met with the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto on Friday, July 21. During the warm meeting, Airlangga talked with Tony about various important matters regarding international relations, ranging from investment, trade, national strategic projects, to the capital city of the archipelago.

Tony Blair also visited SOE Minister Erick Thohir on the same day. The two met to discuss the 2024-2034 SOE roadmap. Erick revealed that the Ministry of SOEs has been working with the Tony Blair Institute for 3 years. Seeing the closeness between the former British PM and Indonesia made the public curious about Tony Blair's profile.

Tony Blair was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on May 6, 1953. The man whose full name is Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is the son of a well-known lawyer, Leo Blair. Tony studied quite well. Tony studied at Fettes College in Edinburgh and St. John College of the University of Oxford.

In college, Tony Blair studied law with the interest of religious ideas and popular music. After graduating from the University of Oxford in 1975, Tony chose to focus on pursuing labor and commercial law. Over time, he entered politics by joining the Labor Party.

Tony Blair is a young politician who has a career in politics at a young age. Together with the labor party, Tony was successfully elected to the parliamentary seat at Sedgefield in 1983. In 1994, Tony was trusted to serve as party leader.

Tony Blair managed to climb the ladder of his career quite brilliantly. He managed to become British Prime Minister in 1997, and was listed as the youngest PM in British history. In 2001, Tony was re-elected to hold the post of British Prime Minister.

During his tenure, Tony Blair became a fairly respected PM figure. A number of advances Tony promoted were British economic growth, an emphasis on social justice, security returns in Eastern Ireland, and others.

But on the other hand, Tony's leadership has also received a lot of criticism. Tony is considered to have implemented leadership tending to be authoritarian, engaging in war in Iraq, increasing crime, and increasing state debt.

Tony Blair has a special relationship with the Indonesian government. In 2020, President Jokowi asked Tony Blair to become a member of the IKN Advisory Council with Masayoshi Son founder of SoftBank and Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed al Nahyan President of the United Arab Emirates.

President Jokowi asked Tony Blair for help to promote IKN to the international community. Tony Blair stated that the government could promote a number of potential countries and companies in the Asian region to invest in IKN.

In addition, Minister Erick Thohir also revealed that the Ministry of SOEs has been collaborating with the Tony Blair Institute since several years ago. Erick said that cooperation steps were taken to reform the Ministry of SOEs.

That's the profile of Tony Blair, the former British PM and his relationship with Indonesia. Indonesia continues to maintain closeness with Tony Blair as one of the people who have an important position in international relations. Tony Blair also hopes that the Indonesian government can continue and improve the ongoing program.

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