| Summary/Abstract |
The International Military Education and Training (IMET), has given Indonesian military personnel access to U.S. doctrine and tactics. However, due to the dynamics and changes in priorities of interest between the U.S. and Indonesia, the IMET program has experienced a critical period, when for over a decade, from 1992 to 2005, the U.S. Congress imposed a ban on the program for the Indonesian military. The country also adopted an embargo towards Indonesia in responding to the ‘Santa Cruz’ incident in East Timor in 1991. Not only had the embargo limited defence cooperation with the United States, but also with its alliance countries. During the ‘IMET Ban’ period, access to U.S. professional military education was significantly reduced. The ban fully restricted Indonesian military’s development since the country relied on the American military’s doctrines and tactics. The ban further disrupted the U.S.–Indonesia defence relations. Therefore, through desk research, this article uses process tracing approach to qualitatively examine the dynamic of the US–Indonesia defence relations during the ‘IMET Ban’ period. The lessons learned during this period in the article are important to help the current Trump and Widodo administrations navigate their bilateral defence relations.
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