JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - President Prabowo Subianto decided to still go to China to fulfill President Xi Jinping's invitation last night, Tuesday (2/9/2025).

Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi stated that Prabowo's visit would be short-lived. He would return to Indonesia on Wednesday evening (September 3, 2025).

"To maintain good relations with the Chinese government, the President has decided to depart tonight," Prasetyo said on the Presidential Secretariat's YouTube channel on Tuesday night.

Prasetyo hopes that during this short visit, Prabowo can still engage in discussions that will benefit Indonesia.

"We hope, we all hope, that perhaps during his visit, there will be discussions that will benefit Indonesia's relationship with the Chinese government," he added.

What's on the agenda?

Prasetyo said the President decided to go because there was a very strong request from the Chinese government to attend their military parade.

"In the past few days, there has been a very strong request from the Chinese government for President Prabowo Subianto to attend, at least one day, the 80th anniversary commemoration and the Chinese government's military parade," Prasetyo said.

A military parade will be held in China today. The parade will serve as an opportunity for President Xi Jinping to assert himself as the guardian of international order amid geopolitical uncertainty.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto (right) and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a state ceremony in Beijing, China, Saturday (November 9, 2024). The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that the Indonesia-China maritime cooperation does not recognize the nine-dash line and does not impact Indonesian sovereignty in the North Natuna Sea.

More than 20 world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, will gather in Beijing for a “Victory Day” event marking 80 years since Japan’s defeat at the end of World War II.

China's official media outlet, Xinhua, reported that the “Victory Day” parade will start at 9:00 a.m. local time (01:00 GMT).

The 70-minute military show will showcase cutting-edge weaponry such as hypersonic missiles and the latest drone systems.

The increased number of leaders from Central Asia, West Asia, and Southeast Asia attending compared to the 2015 military parade is also seen as part of Beijing's efforts to expand geopolitical ties in the region.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic are the only Western leaders who will attend.

It was cancelled due to the dynamics of the country

Prabowo was supposed to leave for China last weekend. However, he decided not to due to the dynamics of the various demonstrations in the country.

"Of course, because of the dynamics within the country, the President wants to continue monitoring directly. He also wants to continue monitoring directly," he said.