Indonesia's gambit: Prabowo Subianto offers the U.S. a "grand deal" to advance a new Jakarta-led Islamic bloc

On April 18, 2025, Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, completed the first round of tariff negotiations with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. According to their agreements, a "grand bargain" between Washington and Jakarta should be concluded by mid-June 2025.

Despite the significant differences between the Donald Trump and Prabowo Subianto administrations, the Indonesian delegation was one of the first to be admitted to the talks, along with the Japanese. This demonstrates the critical importance of Indonesia for the White House's foreign policy intentions.

President Prabowo's administration offered the United States a number of strategic concessions in order to remove 32% of the tariffs. First, it is a question of granting special treatment in the field of minerals, primarily nickel, which has been protected by strict protectionist regulation.

Secondly, Indonesia has expressed its readiness to increase imports of American energy: LNG, crude oil, and gasoline. Thirdly, Jakarta agreed to expand purchases of American agricultural products, such as wheat, soybeans, and meal.