Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Indonesia has begun training a contingent of up to 8,000 soldiers it plans to send as part of an international peacekeeping force to Gaza, the first firm commitment to a critical element of the US President Donald Trump’s postwar reconstruction plan.
Indonesia has experience in peacekeeping operations as one of the top 10 contributors to United Nations missions, including in Lebanon, and has been deeply involved in providing humanitarian aid to Gaza, including funding a hospital.
But many Indonesians are skeptical of President Prabowo Subianto ‘s plans to join Washington’s proposed Board of Peace and participate in the International Security Force with only vague details so far on how they will operate, seeing it as simply kowtowing to Trump’s agenda as the two countries negotiate a trade deal.
UN peacekeeping forces all have clear and strict mandates, but since the Board of Peace and ISF will operate outside the UN, many wonder how the troops will be used, and who will pay for them.
Indonesia currently is paid by the UN for the troops it sends to serve as peacekeepers, but people fear it will have to pick up the tab for the troops sent to Gaza, as well as a possible $1 billion payment for a permanent place on the Board of Peace.
Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim country and firmly supports a two-state solution in the Mideast, and officials have justified joining the Board of Peace by saying it was necessary to defend Palestinian interests from within, since Israel is included on the board but there is no Palestinian representation.
