Antara News·Indonesia·Saturday, October 24, 2026 at 04:28 AM UTC

RI, Australia push regional cooperation against transnational crime

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Fianda Sjofjan R, Martha Herlinawati Simanjuntak

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian and Australian governments push stronger regional security cooperation to combat terrorism and transnational crime, including human trafficking, online scam centers, and cybercrime, at a regional meeting in Jakarta on Friday (Oct 23).

At the seventh Sub-Regional Meeting on Counter Terrorism and Transnational Security (SRM), Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Dudung Abdurachman said the coordinated responses increase necessary as security threats become more interconnected.

"Today's security threats are increasingly interconnected and require a joint response," Abdurachman said in a statement.

Indonesia promoted stronger regional coordination, information sharing, and capacity building to translate shared commitments into concrete action and strengthen regional security and resilience, he said.

The meeting brought together eight countries, namely Indonesia, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Abdurachman co-chaired the meeting with Tony Burke as the Australian Minister for Home Affairs, Immigration and Citizenship, Cyber Security, and the Arts.

Participants emphasized building trust, expanding intelligence sharing, strengthening operational coordination, and developing joint capabilities to address increasingly complex cross-border threats.

Discussions covered counter-terrorism and violent extremism, irregular migration, human trafficking and people smuggling, online scam centers, cybercrime, maritime security and critical infrastructure protection.

Delegates also examined the risk of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), being exploited for criminal activities and extremism.

On the transnational crime, participants called for stronger intelligence exchanges, victim identification and protection, coordinated investigations, and action against human trafficking and people-smuggling networks.

They also highlighted cooperation among countries of origin, transit and destination through regional mechanisms such as ASEANAPOL and the Bali Process.

Maritime security discussions focused on coordinated patrols, information sharing, joint exercises, and stronger law enforcement capabilities at sea.

Priorities included combating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, addressing maritime crime, and protecting subsea infrastructure, including cables and pipelines, in accordance with national and international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

On the counter-terrorism, delegates highlighted online radicalization, young people's vulnerability, terrorist financing and the misuse of AI for propaganda, recruitment and terrorist activities.

They also discussed the emerging threat of Nihilistic Violent Extremism, intelligence sharing, and rehabilitation and reintegration programs.

Further, cybersecurity cooperation focused on exchanging threat information, protecting critical infrastructure and coordinating responses to cross-border cyber incidents.

As a concrete follow-up, Indonesia and Australia will jointly lead an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Senior Officials Counter-Terrorism Policy Forum (SOCTPF) after six years of operation, in consultation with member countries.

The meeting also welcomed progress on an Online Crisis Notification Protocol, plans to update the Glossary of Extremist Content Online 2025, and the development of a regional sentiment analysis framework to counter violent extremism online.

Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia, which jointly chair the SOCTPF for 2026-2027, are developing the initiatives.

Delegates welcomed Indonesia's role as host of the seventh SRM and Australia's contribution as co-chair. The meeting underscored the interconnected nature of national security and the need for collective action against cross-border threats.

The eighth SRM is scheduled to take place in Australia, with the date yet to be determined.

Indonesia said it would continue coordinating with relevant ministries, agencies and regional partners on information sharing, capacity building and operational cooperation to promote a safe, stable and resilient region.

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