‘Don’t take eye off opportunistic Russia’, former envoy warns

The nation’s former envoy to Moscow has warned that Russia was looking for opportunities to expand into the Asia-Pacific as Indonesia opened the door for visits for ‘peaceful missions’.

Russian President Vladimir Putin with Indonesia’s President-elect Prabowo Subianto during a meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow in July 2024. Picture: Pool/AFP

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The nation’s former envoy to Moscow has warned Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton that Russia was looking for opportunities to expand into the Asia-Pacific as Indonesia opened the door for Vladimir Putin’s forces to visit their soil for “peaceful missions”.

Indonesia’s foreign ministry broke its silence on Russia’s request to use a base in Papua, saying it would always “receive and permit” foreign militaries on “peaceful missions”.

After the revelations dominated the election campaign earlier this week, the Prime Minister on Thursday said there was no base and no prospect of a base, again criticising the Opposition Leader’s “verballing” of Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto.

It came as the defence publication that broke the story, the Janes, stood by its reporting saying its report was “accurate”.

Speaking to The Australian on Thursday, former Australian ambassador to Russia Peter Tesch – who served for three years in the role from 2016 – said the government couldn’t afford to take its eyes off Russia, which had renewed its efforts to “probe areas of opportunity”.

“Russia sees Indonesia as a country of interest and of priority focus in the Southeast Asian region,” Mr Tesch said.

He added that he was surprised at the degree to which some took the report as “fait accompli”, given any base would have sit “uneasily” with Indonesia’s leading role in the non-aligned movement.

Mr Tesch was a deputy secretary in the Defence Department, but also one of Australia’s leads on the AUKUS partnership, focusing on warfighting advantages. He was also an Australian ambassador to Germany and Kazakhstan, and held diplomatic positions in what was then the USSR.

Former Australian ambassador to Russia Peter Tesch.

“I know both the former Russian ambassador (in Indonesia) and her successor, and they’re highly capable, competent people,” Mr Tesch said.

“The fact that Russia posts people (of that calibre) to a country like Indonesia is indicative of the seriousness with which they view this part of the world.”

Mr Tesch said the US retreat from global affairs had given the Kremlin the impetus to “probe” areas of interest.

“What we are seeing is a renewed effort by Russia to probe areas of opportunity that are perhaps now a little more attractive in light of the unease that (US President Donald) Trump’s policies have provoked among allies and partners around the globe, and certainly in our region,” said the Australian National University visiting fellow, who is based at the institution’s centre for European studies.

“A longstanding agenda item for the Kremlin has been to corrode trust and confidence in US primacy and to exploit tactical opportunities for longer-term strategic gain …”

Mr Tesch said he had “no doubt” conversations had taken place between “parts” of the Russian and Indonesian “systems” about basing aircraft in Indonesia, and that the Kremlin’s interest in the Asia-Pacific was “cause for concern” for Canberra.

“Any sort of evolution of the episodic interest that Russia has shown in the region would be grounds for concern, particularly now,” he said.

“I think part of this is Russia signalling to the broader world that it retains the intent and the capability to project itself into the more distant parts of the world.”

Mr Tesch said it could also be viewed as a shot across the bows to Beijing, with Russia trying to signal to China it would “not cede primacy” in any region it had an interest in.

“We should not brush off the fact that they (Russia) are interested in our part of the world,” he said.

“Russia asserts its status as a great power, and therefore insists that it has interests all around the globe. And so this (the request to Indonesia), even if it was mid-ranking officials talking to mid-ranking officials, reminds us of the importance of not taking our eye off Russia.”

Anthony Albanese on the campaign trail on Thursday. Picture: Mark Stewart/NewsWire

Peter Dutton on the campaign trail on Thursday. Picture: Richard Dobson/NewsWire

Mr Tesch lamented what he called a “degradation” of “Russia literacy” among Australian governmental circles, urging a reversal of dwindling expertise in the region and its politics.

“We need to develop – or at least stop the haemorrhage of – our Russian literacy and we need to rebuild our capacity to comprehend what they (Putin’s government) are after,” he said.

“Russia matters to us for a variety of reasons, but it matters to us not least because it matters to countries that matter to us.”

Earlier this week, Labor frontbenchers said they had sought urgent communications with Indonesian counterparts and reported back there was “no prospect” the country would host Russian air assets.

On Wednesday night, Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Rolliansyah Soemirat issued a statement addressing the saga for the first time since the report was published.

“Indonesia has never granted permission to any country to build or possess a military base in Indonesia,” the statement read.

“As a country with a longstanding tradition of a free and active foreign policy, Indonesia will receive and permit military aircraft or vessels from other nations on peaceful missions to visit Indonesia.

“Indonesia has plans to build a satellite launch site in Biak. Discussions on this matter began several years ago but have not yet resulted in any decision.”

While campaigning in Brisbane on Thursday, Mr Albanese criticised how the Opposition Leader had falsely referred to a non-existent statement by the Indonesian President about the base, something Mr Dutton called a “mistake” during Wednesday’s leaders debate.

“It (Mr Dutton’s retracted claim) was simply wrong,” Mr Albanese said.

“It’s not happening. There’s not a base.”