Marinkovic: Indonesia adheres to international law and resists pressure to recognize Kosovo

Former Serbian ambassador to Indonesia Slobodan Marinkovic tells Kosovo Online that pressure on Indonesia to recognize Kosovo has persisted for the past two decades, but that the key position of this country—one of the most influential in that part of the world—is its commitment to an independent foreign policy.

“They say they pursue an independent and flexible foreign policy,” Marinkovic notes.

As a country with the world’s largest Muslim population, Indonesia, he explains, has also withstood internal pressures on this issue, since certain political parties in Indonesia advocate recognition.

He points out that representatives of Kosovo and Albania have sought interlocutors on religious lines regarding this matter.

Albanian President Bajram Begaj, while receiving the credentials of Indonesia’s new ambassador last week, called on Jakarta to reconsider its position and recognize Kosovo. However, Marinkovic says that Indonesia fully upholds UN Security Council Resolution 1244, under which Kosovo and Metohija are an integral part of the Republic of Serbia, and advocates resolving disputes and problems through dialogue.

“At the conference of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, where Indonesia is a full and highly respected member, almost every year a resolution is adopted calling on all Islamic countries to recognize Kosovo, and Indonesia enters a reservation. It consistently supports Serbia in international organizations when it comes to Kosovo’s applications for membership in UNESCO, Interpol, or any other international body. It firmly adheres to the principles of international law and the UN Charter, and, just as we do, preserves the traditional friendship between the two countries,” Marinkovic stresses.

He adds that Indonesia has always defended principled positions in international affairs, grounded in international law.

As for whether Indonesia’s stance influences smaller countries in the region, our interlocutor says that when the largest Muslim-majority country does not recognize Kosovo, other smaller ASEAN members will not do so either.

“Just as I believe that Indonesia would never recognize the way Kosovo was created, neither will the Philippines, Vietnam, nor Cambodia. If there is no dependence on a major power that champions and sponsors Kosovo’s statehood, our position within ASEAN countries is quite stable and secure,” Marinkovic concludes with confidence.