JAKARTA - President Prabowo Subianto explained the reason why Indonesia and other Muslim-majority countries joined the Board of Peace (BoP).
Prabowo, in a discussion with a number of experts and senior journalists at Hambalang Bogor, West Java, whose video footage aired on Thursday, said Indonesia's decision to join the BoP was made after careful consideration, with the aim of supporting the full independence of Palestine.
Prabowo explained that Indonesia's early involvement in the formation of the BoP began on September 23, when he delivered a speech at the UN General Assembly.
At that time, Prabowo emphasized support for Palestinian independence while encouraging a two-state solution.
A few hours later, he continued, Prabowo was invited by US President Donald Trump to a meeting with seven leaders of Muslim-majority countries in the Group of Eight, such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Turkey, Pakistan, Qatar, and Egypt.
During the meeting, Trump is said to have asked the countries to support the 21-point plan, which is a proposal to create sustainable peace in Gaza. According to Prabowo, the details of the points were read one by one by US special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Prabowo then listened carefully to the proposal and was interested in points 19 and 20, which explained that Palestine would be given a way to become an independent nation and be able to determine its future.
In addition, there is also a point that the US will facilitate dialogue between Israel and Palestine so that they can live side by side peacefully.
The contents of the proposal were considered in line with Indonesia's view on the Palestinian issue, that a long-term peace can be achieved through a two-state solution.
"So, we see that (points) 19 and 20 have opportunities (for Palestinian independence) even though we know it's a little. In the end, we are eight (leaders of Muslim-majority countries) discussing, do we support this or not? In the end, in the lobbies we say, we support," said Prabowo.
Furthermore, the leaders appointed the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to be their spokesperson to convey to Trump that the countries support the points of the plan.
"We like your plan. But the problem is not us. The problem is Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel," said Prabowo recalling that moment.
Shortly after the meeting, according to him, the idea of the establishment of the BoP emerged, which was also adopted in UN Security Council Resolution 2803.
In response to this development, the eight Muslim-majority countries, which were later called the Group of Eight, again negotiated whether or not to participate in it.
Based on the results of the negotiations, they assessed that joining the BoP would provide a greater space to influence policy directions to be in the interests of the Palestinians.
This, emphasized Prabowo, is much more realistic and concrete in fighting for Palestinian independence than choosing not to join the BoP.
"If we are inside, maybe we can influence and help the Palestinian people," said the President.
"If it's outside (BoP), we can't (fight for Palestine). So, in the end we decided, we're in," he added.
However, the Head of State said Indonesia would not hesitate to leave the BoP if the results of its decisions were not in line with the interests of Indonesia or Palestine.
In fact, according to him, Indonesia could have left the council without having to negotiate it first with other members of the Group of Eight.
"As long as we are in the BoP we can help the Palestinian people's struggle, we will try. Once we conclude that there is no hope and it is counterproductive, we assess that we have run out of time, run out of energy, and it is not beneficial to the national interests of the Indonesian nation, we will leave," he added.
Prabowo hopes that Indonesia and other members of the Group of Eight can contribute positively to long-term peace in Palestine.
"So, I have been fighting for the Indonesian nation. We have always defended Palestinian independence," said the President.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
