India and Indonesia have agreed to significantly expand their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s State Visit to Indonesia from 6–8 July 2026. The visit came at the invitation of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and followed President Prabowo’s visit to India as the Chief Guest for the country’s 76th Republic Day celebrations in January 2025.
During the visit, the two leaders held extensive discussions covering defence, maritime security, trade, digital economy, energy, critical minerals, health, education, infrastructure, science and technology, and regional cooperation. They also witnessed the signing and exchange of several agreements aimed at strengthening long-term bilateral cooperation.
The discussions reflected both countries’ intention to deepen political engagement while expanding economic and strategic cooperation across sectors that have become increasingly important for the Indo-Pacific region. The visit also highlighted growing collaboration in emerging technologies, supply chains, and connectivity projects that could shape future India-Indonesia relations.
Key Highlights
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Indonesia from 6–8 July 2026 at the invitation of President Prabowo Subianto.
- India and Indonesia agreed to hold regular summit meetings and strengthen existing bilateral dialogue mechanisms.
- The two countries expanded cooperation in defence, maritime security, critical minerals, digital economy, space, health, education, and energy.
- Several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and strategic agreements were signed across sectors, including steel, disaster management, telecommunications, medical products, and outer space cooperation.
- Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to combating terrorism, strengthening Indo-Pacific cooperation, and supporting reforms of global institutions.
- Leaders also discussed enhancing trade, investment, financial connectivity, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges.
Read: India UK Trade Agreement 2026 to Take Effect on July 15, Expanding Exports and Services Trade
India and Indonesia Expand Strategic and Security Cooperation
Prime Minister Modi and President Prabowo held official bilateral talks in Jakarta covering nearly every aspect of the relationship between the two countries. Besides agreeing to hold regular summit meetings, both sides decided to strengthen existing institutional mechanisms such as the Joint Commission Meeting, Foreign Office Consultations, and parliamentary exchanges.
Defence and maritime cooperation emerged as one of the central outcomes of the visit. Building upon their 2018 Shared Vision on Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, both countries agreed to increase defence dialogue, joint military exercises, naval cooperation, information sharing, hydrography, capacity building, and defence industrial collaboration.
The leaders also welcomed progress in cooperation involving the BrahMos missile system, air-to-air missile collaboration, maritime safety, coastal surveillance, humanitarian assistance, and search-and-rescue operations. Indonesia will continue its participation at India’s Information Fusion Centre–Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR), further strengthening maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific.
On security issues, both governments strongly condemned terrorism in all forms and reaffirmed a zero-tolerance approach. They agreed to enhance cooperation on counter-terrorism, anti-money laundering (AML), countering terrorist financing (CFT), cyber security, organised crime, and digital security while supporting international efforts under the United Nations and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Trade, Investment and Critical Minerals Receive Major Push
Economic cooperation remained another major focus of the visit. Both leaders acknowledged the strong economic complementarities between India’s Viksit Bharat 2047 vision and Indonesia’s Indonesia Emas 2045 development agenda. They expressed support for an early conclusion of the review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA), followed by broader bilateral economic engagement.
The two countries agreed to strengthen existing economic mechanisms, including meetings of the Working Group on Trade and Investment, the Biennial Trade Ministers’ Forum, and the newly established Joint Economic and Financial Dialogue.
Critical minerals and rare earth cooperation received particular attention as governments worldwide seek more resilient supply chains for advanced manufacturing. India and Indonesia agreed to deepen collaboration in rare earths and strategic minerals while welcoming agreements involving the Non-Ferrous Materials Technology Development Centre (NFTDC), Midwest Ltds., and Indonesia’s PERMINAS.
The leaders also welcomed cooperation in the steel sector, including a strategic joint venture between the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and PT Krakatau Steel to explore a stainless-steel slab manufacturing facility in Indonesia. Such projects could strengthen regional manufacturing supply chains and reduce dependence on concentrated global sources of critical industrial materials.
Financial cooperation also advanced through progress on Local Currency Transactions (LCT) between the Reserve Bank of India and Bank Indonesia, which aims to simplify bilateral trade settlements and strengthen financial integration.
Digital Connectivity, Infrastructure, Energy and Health Cooperation
Digital cooperation featured prominently throughout the discussions. Indonesia launched the Indonesia Open Network (ION) based on India’s Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) architecture, aiming to improve digital market access for Indonesian micro, small and medium enterprises.
The two countries also made progress toward implementing a Cross-Border QR Payment Linkage, expected to make transactions easier for tourists, students, businesses, and MSMEs while improving cross-border payment efficiency. In addition, both governments concluded an MoU on telecommunications technologies and services to expand digital connectivity and support digital transformation.
Infrastructure cooperation also gained momentum. Both sides agreed to improve maritime and air connectivity while advancing discussions on the Andaman-Aceh connectivity initiative. President Prabowo welcomed India’s interest in partnering on the development of Indonesia’s Sabang Port, including shipbuilding, marine tourism, logistics, and offshore energy support facilities.
In healthcare, both countries signed agreements covering professional health workforce development and medical product regulation. They also agreed to strengthen collaboration in pharmaceuticals, agriculture, food security, fertilizers, and energy, including renewable energy technologies such as green hydrogen, solar energy, bioenergy, and energy efficiency.
These initiatives indicate that India and Indonesia are broadening cooperation beyond traditional diplomacy toward sectors that directly support economic resilience, public health, sustainable development, and technological advancement.
Stronger Cooperation in Education, Space, Culture and Global Governance
The visit also expanded cooperation in science, education, culture, and multilateral affairs.
India and Indonesia agreed to continue collaboration in space research through cooperation between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN). The leaders welcomed the extension of their framework agreement on the peaceful uses of outer space and discussed broader cooperation in satellite launches, space infrastructure, and Indonesia’s proposed spaceport project.
Education and cultural ties also received renewed attention. Both governments announced that 2026–2027 will be celebrated as the “Tagore–Dewantara Year of India–Indonesia Cultural and Educational Diplomacy,” commemorating the centenary of Rabindranath Tagore’s 1927 visit to Indonesia. They also encouraged greater collaboration in higher education, research, student exchanges and welcomed the proposed establishment of an Indian Institute of Management Bangalore campus in Indonesia.
On the global stage, both countries reaffirmed support for a free, open, and rules-based Indo-Pacific region based on international law and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). They backed reforms of the United Nations Security Council, stronger South-South cooperation, and closer coordination within forums including BRICS, G20, ASEAN, the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), and the East Asia Summit (EAS).
The leaders also expressed concern over geopolitical tensions in West Asia, emphasising dialogue, diplomacy, and freedom of navigation as essential for regional stability and uninterrupted global trade.
Source: Prime Minister’s Office
