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Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/lets-think-indonesia-first-palestine/
Let's Think about Indonesia First, Then Palestine
(Jakarta Globe) Pitan Daslani - Indonesia's presidential elections were held on July 9. Official results will be released in two weeks. The first priority of Indonesia's foreign policy under a Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla government - if they win Wednesday's presidential election - would be to open an Indonesian embassy in Ramallah. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicated in February 2012 that it was seriously studying the possibility of opening an Indonesian "representative office" in Ramallah. Indonesia's diplomatic mission closest to Palestine currently is the embassy in Jordan, while Israel's diplomatic mission closest to Indonesia is its embassy in Singapore. But opening an Indonesian representative office in Palestine "would not be easy, because we need to coordinate with Israel," said the ministry's spokesman Michael Tene. This reality cannot be ignored because opening an embassy in the absence of diplomatic relations with Israel is very challenging. To play a conciliatory role, Indonesia needs to open a dialog with Israel and adjust to the ongoing peace process. Relations with Palestine are very warm but the same can't be said for Israel.