Politik Luar Negeri Malaysia terhadap Indonesia, 1957-1976: Dari Konfrontasi Menuju Kerjasama

This paper entitled Malaysias Foreign Policy toward Indonesia, 1957-1976: From Confrontation toward Cooperation. In the course of its history, the relationship between Indonesia and Malaysia has unique characteristics. As the nearest neighbors and has a much similarities in various aspects, such as the legacy of history, religion, language, and culture, relations between the two countries do not always run smoothly. This paper will look at the history of relations between Indonesia and Malaysia, which have ups and downs. In looking at the dynamics of the relations between the two countries, factors of national interests and leading figure are the most important thing. If national interests and leading figure of the two countries are different, the relations between the two countries are strained, as has been seen during the reign of Tunku Abdul Rahman in Malaysia (1957-1970) and the government of Soekarno in Indonesia (1945-1966). Conversely, if the national interests and leading figure of both countries have in common, then, the relations between the two countries are good, as shown at the time of Tun Abdul Razak's reign in Malaysia (1970-1976) and Soeharto's government in Indonesia (1966-1998). Thus, the relationship of history and other factors in common does not necessarily become a strong bond, even sometimes to be a problem in the relations between the two brother countries, Indonesia and Malaysia.