TNI Commander Uses 'Smart Power' Approach To Handle KKB Attacks

TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto after the National Coordination Meeting of the Gakkumdu Center in Jakarta, Monday (27/11/2023). (ANTARA/Fath Putra Mulya)

TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto will approach the smart power against attacks carried out by the Armed Criminal Group (KKB) in Paro District, Nduga Regency, Papua Mountains, in the past week.

"Handling Papua, we have to have a smart power, yes," Agus said at a press conference at the TNI AD Headquarters (Mabesad), Jakarta, as reported by ANTARA, Friday, December 1.

Agus emphasized that the use of soft power is a priority, while hard power will be considered the last option because KKB has carried out continuous attacks on the troops on duty.

"If the hard power is the last way, like they (KKB) have now attacked us, yes, we use hard power," explained Agus.

Agus Subiyanto launched a smart power approach which is a combination of hard power, soft power, and diplomacy for handling security problems in Papua.

Meanwhile, on a separate occasion, the Head of Information (Kapen) of the Strategic Reserve Command of the Indonesian Army (Kostrad) Colonel Inf. Hendhi Yustian confirmed that there had been a shootout between the Raider 411/Pandawa Mechanical Yonif Task Force personnel and the KKB in Paro District, Nduga Regency, Papua Mountains, Thursday (30/11), causing the death of two TNI soldiers.

"That's right," said Hendhimng confirmed via a short message received in Jakarta, Thursday (30/11).

Hendhi has not explained the chronology of the incident.

Previously, Saturday (11/25), there was also a shootout between the Raider 411/Pandawa Infantry Battalion Task Force and the KKB in Nduga which caused the death of four soldiers.

The Cartenz Peace Task Force (Satgas) 2023 together with the Papua Regional Police strengthened security in nine areas of operation which were considered points of crime from the KKB.

Head of the Cartenz Peaceful Public Relations Task Force (Kasatgas) 2023 AKBP Bayu Suseno, in a statement received on Thursday (30/11), said his party was aggressively carrying out early detection and intensive patrols in nine areas of Cartenz peace operations.

According to Beny, the joint TNI-Polri team that is included in the Cartenz peacekeeping focus in nine areas to prevent security disturbances from groups that want to separate themselves from the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.