Embassy move ‘slap in face’ for Indonesia

Messages apparently sent from Retno Marsudi warned that relocating Australia’s Israeli embassy would ‘slap Indonesia’s face’.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne. Picture: AAP

Furious messages apparently sent from Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi to Marise Payne warning that relocating Australia’s Israeli embassy to Jerusalem would “slap Indonesia’s face” and “affect bilateral relations” has exposed the depth of anger in Jakarta over the potential policy shift and the risks to Australia’s most important regional relationship.

A screenshot of the Whatsapp messages, obtained last night by Channel 7, shows a series of four terse messages reportedly sent by Ms Retno, which began: “Is this really necessary to do this on Tuesday” — the day she was scheduled to meet visiting Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki.

“It will be a really big blow.

“It will slap Indonesia’s face on the Palestine issue.”

The series ends with the warning: “This will affect bilateral ­relations.”

Indonesian foreign ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir told The Australian last night he had “no knowledge” of the messages seen by Australian government ministers and would have to “check whether this is true or not”.

Ms Retno is known to have frequently communicated by message with former foreign minister Julie Bishop and recently said she had begun doing so with her successor, Senator Payne.

Ms Retno formally summoned Australia’s ambassador to Jakarta, Gary Quinlan, to a meeting late on Tuesday to convey Indonesia’s “serious concerns” over the possible embassy relocation, which has created fresh strains in a historically temperamental relationship just as the two countries are poised to sign a landmark free-trade deal.

Indonesia, a steadfast supporter of the Palestinian state, has warned Australia against following the US lead in relocating Australia’s Israel embassy.

Mr Quinlan said after the meeting that he had reassured Ms Retno “that Australia has taken no decisions on these matters affecting Jerusalem but … that we are looking at the situation and looking at different options”.

Explosive messages sent by the Indonesian Foreign Minister to Marise Payne show the country's fury over the Israel Embassy move. Picture: Channel Seven

Australia remained “strongly in favour of a two-state solution where we have two states, Israel and a Palestinian state, living side-by-side in peace and security; that position has not changed”.

“(Mr Morrison) has given a very, very firm commitment of that but he has indicated there will be … a review of what the options are in terms of Jerusalem and the status of Jerusalem in our diplomatic eyes.”

Both the Indonesian foreign ministry and Mr Quinlan denied there was any discussion over the possible consequences to the Indonesia Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement should Australia proceed with the controversial relocation.

But a senior Indonesian government official said discussions were already under way over how to respond to an Australian shift on the issue and that “some impact to CEPA is certainly being discussed internally as a possible response to moving the embassy”.

It will also likely affect relations with neighbouring Malaysia, where prime minister-in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim said yesterday he would expect ASEAN to lodge a “very, very strong protest against the Australian government” if it went ahead with the move.

Additional reporting: Nivell Rayda