Since disturbing reports about a Russian bid to base aircraft in Indonesia broke last week, both sides of Australian politics have continued to exploit the issue to their advantage as the election campaign rolls on. For the opposition Coalition, the incident demonstrated the Labor government’s lack of transparency and weak national security credentials; for Labor, the hyping of the incident underscored the Coalition’s recklessness and inexperience in managing foreign relations. But this heated pre-election political debate has left Australians none the wiser about the nature of Russia’s strategic interests, Indonesia’s foreign policy, and Australia’s relationship with Jakarta.
Facts gone missing in Australia’s debate about Indonesia-Russia basing deal | Lowy Institute
