Indonesia Postpones D-8 Summit

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the 2026 Summit of the Developing Eight Organization for Economic Cooperation (D-8) scheduled to be held in Jakarta has been postponed until further notice. Director for Multilateral Cooperation at the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tri Tharyat, said that Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Sugiono, had sent a letter to D-8 member states regarding the postponement of the summit and all related events.

“Regarding the new date, it will be discussed in more detail at the appropriate time. At the moment, it may not be the right time as developments in the Middle East are still ongoing,” Tri Tharyat told the media during a press conference in Jakarta on Friday, March 13, 2026.

According to him, the decision was made after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs consulted with the D-8 Secretary-General, commissioners, ambassadors of D-8 member states, and partner representatives in their respective accredited countries.

He added that D-8 member states had also provided input regarding the summit and understood the situation amid the ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran.

“Of course we have spoken with all member states and, fortunately, they have all provided their input. They understand that the current situation is not an easy one,” he said.

Tri Tharyat further noted that the postponement also took into account developments in other international agendas. He cited the Ministerial Conference of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which had been scheduled for April 9–10 in Baghdad, Iraq, but was also postponed.

He said postponing international conferences under such circumstances is normal. Nevertheless, Tri emphasized that activities under Indonesia’s chairmanship of D-8 will continue as planned.

Before the postponement, Indonesia had been scheduled to host the D-8 Summit on April 15, 2026, preceded by senior officials’ meetings and a meeting of foreign ministers.

The D-8 is an economic cooperation organization of developing countries consisting of Indonesia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkey. Azerbaijan became the newest member to join the organization in December 2024.

Regional tensions escalated after Iran was attacked by the United States and Israel on February 28, killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, along with hundreds of civilians and several senior Iranian officials. Iran later launched retaliatory strikes targeting U.S. military assets in several Middle Eastern countries.