Observer: The Fuss About Jokowi's Claim? It's A Matter Of Perception!

Jokowi invited Zelensky and Putin to attend the G20 summit in Bali. (Doc President.gov.ua)

JAKARTA - Postgraduate Communication Studies Observer, Sahid University, Dr. Algooth Putranto assessed that the dialectic regarding President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) who claimed to carry a message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Russian President Vladimir Putin was only a matter of perception.

“As an Indonesian, I would applaud the arrival of President Jokowi, who was calculated very cleverly while taking into account the security factor. There are non-verbal messages which, if read properly, show the ingenuity of the Indonesian people in mediating conflicts," he said.

This is not the first time Indonesian leaders have used non-verbal messages such as how Soekarno treated Nikita Khrushchev, Suharto with his visit to Bosnia Herzegovina and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono when strumming guitar for Vladimir Putin.

What are the non-verbal messages during Jokowi's visit to Kiev and Moscow? First, the purpose of President Jokowi's first visit was to Kiev, not Moscow, which is traditionally closer to Jakarta emotionally. This is a clear message to Russia that Indonesia cares about Ukraine.

Jokowi and Putin. (Kremlin Doc)

For Indonesians, the value of Russian friendship will be difficult to understand. In Russian culture, they take friendship very seriously which is expressed in various words that represent the level of friendship from mere acquaintances to true friends.

Second, the official meeting between Jokowi and Zelensky even though it was carried out wearing non-formal clothes, proxemically or human-to-human distance, actually implied an emotional distance between the two.

"This happened because Jokowi and Zelensky chatted apart from a large table measuring approximately 1.5 meters. Proxemicly, this includes social distancing. On the other hand, the Jokowi-Putin meeting in Moscow, although proxemically intimate, was actually very formal," he said.

Then what about the dialectic regarding Jokowi bringing Zelensky's unwritten message to Putin? Algooth explained that Jokowi's arrival to meet Putin after meeting Zelensky was a firm message to Russia to seek peace.

"Indeed, the big question now is whether Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin chose to attend in person at the G-20 event held by Indonesia. If that happens, all doubts about Jokowi will be answered. So just wait!”