Relationship dossier
Indonesia
Papua New Guinea
Relationship assessment
Cooperation underpinned by bilateral agreements, with recurring sensitivities around the shared border and West Papua
Indonesia toward Papua New Guinea
+35Indonesia has maintained bilateral agreements and cooperation with Papua New Guinea on border management and security, including a treaty of mutual respect, friendship and cooperation signed in 1986. Border security and West Papuan separatist activity remain sensitive issues in the relationship.
Papua New Guinea toward Indonesia
+30Papua New Guinea has recognized Indonesian sovereignty over Papua and maintained a treaty-based relationship with Indonesia, including the 1986 treaty of mutual respect, friendship and cooperation. Border incidents and the presence of West Papuan refugees and separatists have created sensitivities.
Overall relationship
+30The relationship has a durable cooperative framework, including a bilateral treaty and shared attention to border management. Its character is tempered by recurring sensitivities involving the border and West Papua, including separatist activity and refugees. The relationship is therefore cooperative overall, but not without significant points of friction.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Indonesia and Papua New Guinea maintain a cooperative relationship shaped by border management and bilateral agreements, including a 1986 treaty of mutual respect, friendship and cooperation. Papua New Guinea recognizes Indonesian sovereignty over Papua, while disputes and security concerns connected to the border and West Papuan separatism have at times strained relations.
Areas of tension
- West Papuan separatist activity and cross-border security concerns
- West Papuan refugees in Papua New Guinea
- Border incidents and management
Key developments
Indonesia and Papua New Guinea signed a treaty of mutual respect, friendship and cooperation.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and implementation of current border and security cooperation are unclear.
- The extent of recent bilateral cooperation on West Papuan refugee and separatist concerns is unclear.