Indonesia–UK Sign Economic Growth Partnership in London

RRI.CO.ID, London - UK Ambassador to Indonesia, Dominic Jermey, has confirmed that a strategic partnership between Indonesia and the United Kingdom will be a concrete outcome of the meeting between UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer and Indonesian President, Prabowo Subianto in London.

According to a statement from the UK Embassy in Jakarta on Monday, 19 January 2026, Jermey said that when the two leaders last met in London, they agreed to launch a bilateral strategic partnership.

“That is the key document to be launched on this occasion, covering a range of sectors such as defense and security, economic growth—which is a priority for both leaders, people-to-people relations, as well as climate, energy, and nature,” Jermey said.

He noted that Indonesia and the United Kingdom are highly important partners to one another, given that the UK is the world’s sixth-largest economy, while Indonesia ranks 16th globally.

“However, Indonesia is currently only the UK’s 54th-largest export partner. This does not reflect the size of the UK economy or the full potential that we have,” he said.

To address this, Jermey said one of the agendas during President Prabowo’s visit to London will be a dialogue between British business representatives and their Indonesian counterparts to explore export opportunities.

He added that amid increasingly challenging geopolitical conditions, Prime Minister Starmer is focusing on identifying opportunities for shared growth with global partners, including Indonesia.

Jermey revealed that the strategic partnership will be among the key messages delivered by Prime Minister Starmer at the World Economic Forum (WEF), which will be held as usual in Davos, Switzerland.

In addition to economic cooperation, Jermey said President Prabowo will explore opportunities for education cooperation through discussions with the Russell Group, an association of leading UK universities, regarding the potential establishment of their campuses in Indonesia.

President Prabowo is also scheduled to meet representatives of philanthropic organizations to discuss post-disaster recovery efforts in Aceh, West Sumatra, and North Sumatra, as well as elephant conservation initiatives that have received direct support from King Charles III.