Indonesia, Japan Explore Cooperation for KAA Heritage Area

RRI.CO.ID, Tokyo - Indonesia and Japan expand socio-cultural cooperation through cultural exchanges, education, and people-to-people contacts during meetings in Tokyo from Wednesday to Friday, June 17–19, 2026. The discussions also explored cooperation for developing the Asian-African Conference (KAA) Museum heritage area in Bandung.

The initiative is part of the Indonesia-Japan Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. It reflects ongoing efforts by the Indonesian government to deepen cultural ties between both countries.

Director General of Information and Public Diplomacy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador, Heru Subolo, led the Indonesian delegation. The team also included Head of the Asian-African Conference Museum Noviasari Rustam and museum representatives.

The delegation met officials from Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan Foundation, National Archives of Japan, and JACAR. Meetings were also held with the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Tokyo National Museum.

Discussions covered information management, public communication, and cultural diplomacy cooperation in the digital era. The talks also addressed cultural exchanges, Japanese language education, Japanese studies, and global partnerships.

Ambassador Heru Subolo, said Indonesia and Japan discussed strengthening cultural diplomacy under the strategic partnership framework. The discussions also included efforts to develop the Asian-African Conference heritage area in Bandung.

“We held meetings with Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan Foundation, National Archives of Japan, and JACAR. We exchanged views on information management and public communication in the digital era, while strengthening Indonesia-Japan cultural diplomacy under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. We also discussed efforts to develop the Asian-African Conference heritage area in Bandung and met with JICA and the Tokyo National Museum,” he said.

Heru added that Japan's National Archives and JACAR welcomed broader cooperation opportunities with Indonesia. The cooperation would focus on preservation, digitization, and use of Asian-African Conference archives for research, education, and public diplomacy.

Head of the Asian-African Conference Museum, Noviasari Rustam, said Japan responded positively to plans for developing the museum heritage area. She added that Japanese institutions support capacity building, museum networking, archive digitization, education, and public diplomacy cooperation.