The G20 is an international cooperation forum consisting of 19 giant economies. G20 membership consists of representatives of developed and developing countries as well as the European Union. The G20 is a world economic cooperation forum designed to deal with world economic crises such as those that occurred in 1997-1998 and 2007-2008. During this period the world experienced a major economic crisis that led to hunger, poverty and other crisis consequences. At the beginning of 2020 the world experienced a COVID-19 pandemic which caused economic growth to slow down due to almost all countries closing borders and reducing the scale of trade. Therefore. The COVID-16 pandemic has triggered a global economic crisis. In 2022 the G20 presidency will be led by Indonesia with the vision of Recover Together, Recover Stronger. This vision aims to restore the COVID-19 pandemic by voicing justice for the distribution of vaccines to all countries so that COVID-19 will end soon. After that, we will jointly restore the world economy which experienced poor growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Indonesia through its presidency hopes to encourage all member countries to work together towards a sustainable world recovery after the global pandemic.
However, the challenge for Indonesia’s presidency in the G20 is not only a matter of restoring the world economy due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but there is a new conflict that triggers a prolonged economic crisis. The direction of the world’s attention is no longer focused on economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic by distributing vaccines evenly to various countries. The Ukraine-Russia conflict has triggered a shift in the focus of the international world today. Ukraine began to be attacked by Russia on February 24, 2022, until now it has triggered a crisis. Ukraine is a country known as the “European Bread Basket” which is in a fragile political condition, the domestic economy is paralyzed. Thus it is considered to be able to cause an economic crisis.
The G20 agenda in the Indonesian presidency with the vision of Recover Together, Recover Stronger was set before the conflict between Russia and Ukraine occurred. But now is it possible for Indonesia to change the vision that will be in his presidency? It is very difficult to predict that world politics will change when one part of the world experiences vulnerabilities and insecurities, whether caused by intrastate conflicts or interstate conflicts. What is interesting is that Russia is a member of the G20 who will also attend the G20 forum which will be held in Bali, Indonesia at the end of 2022. Therefore, this situation is very challenging for Indonesia.
If viewed from the context of the UN session that was held recently, the divisions within the G20 group of countries are very visible where China is a country that rejects the prohibition of Russia from attending the G20 high-level conference which will be held in Indonesia. In addition, India has also abstained from condemning Russia in various UN resolutions, pointing out the different political directions between each of the G20 members. This shows that there have been divisions within the G20 membership.Seeing this condition, the Indonesian presidency in the 2022 G20 is really in a complicated situation. Free and active foreign policy is really tested in this situation. According to Elizaberth Shackelford, Senior Fellow, Chicago Council on the Global Affairs via the Alajazeera youtube channel, she stated that Indonesia is having a difficult time deciding whether to ban Russia from attending the 2022 G20 summit forum or will continue to invite Russia like other G20 members.
If you look back at the statement by the chairman of the Indonesian G20 Ambassador and Co-Sherpa Dian Triansyah Djani at the G20 Indonesian Presidency seminar on Indonesian Leadership for world order organized by Gadjah Mada University Indonesia on March 17, he stated that the aim of Indonesian leadership is to bridge the interests of developed and developing countries to achieve the same interests. Indonesia’s leadership as a representative of developing countries ensures the aspirations of the G20 as the norm setting agenda to achieve equality between developed and developing countries, especially in access to vaccines. The statement did not mention the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This indicates that Indonesia will continue to focus on its priority agenda, namely the global health system, a sustainable energy transition, and the digital economy. In an interview via the Aljazeera Youtube channel, Foreign Policy Analyst Thomas Noto Sueneto stated that Indonesia will pursue peaceful ways in responding to the conflict situation between Russia and Ukraine during its G20 presidency. Indonesia is currently still considering the policies that will be taken by adhering to Indonesia’s foreign policy that is free and active.
Seeing the increasing complicated world situation, will Indonesia’s agenda change? If you look at the results of the G7 and NATO meetings where all G7 members and some NATO members are members of the G20. In the results of the meeting in Brussels, US President Jie Biden and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison have voiced support for removing Russia from the G20.
The dilemma of the Indonesian presidency is very visible how the world situation shakes Indonesia’s policies at the G20 conference later. The political friction in this conference not only ensures the focus of the G20 year but the current issues bring new challenges in the G20 forum. To overcome the dilemma, there is friction in developed countries between China which demands the presence of Russia and the United States which rejects the presence of Russia. Indonesia’s interests can be overridden by the interests of developed countries. Indonesia can play an important role in his presidency, not only a matter of the interests of developed countries but also the interests of developing countries. There are still many priority issues that can be resolved by peaceful means.
As stated by Colin I. Bradford, the G20 can provide opportunities to engage in global governance discourse. The G20 is the right global forum to make the transition to a pluralistic and effective form of global governance that is inclusive and effective while meeting the evolving challenges of global governance. Thus Indonesia can put aside political friction about Russia’s presence and absence. Indonesia can focus on more inclusive policies.
