Indonesia was one of the first eight countries to recognize Papua New Guinea's independence on 16 September 1975. The Indonesian government began the decolonization process in
West Papua, a former Dutch colony, in 1963, and international recognition was granted in 1969 following the
Act of Free Choice, a controversial referendum, with a voter turnout less than the local population. The
Free Papua Movement (Indonesian: Organisasi Papua Merdeka/OPM) was founded in response, aiming to achieve independence from Indonesia. The movement began an armed struggle primarily against the
Indonesian Army. The Indonesian government's crackdown on the rebellion in West Papua has led to extensive and ongoing border issues resulting in a prolonged refugee presence and constant movement between Papua and Papua New Guinea. For Papua New Guinea, the conflict presents two stark choices: solidarity among fellow
Melanesian tribes or maintaining good relations with Indonesia, its closest neighbor across the border.
Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Michael Somare first visit to Indonesia in 1977 focused on security and economic cooperation, and a desire to establish a joint defense communique. In 1979, President
Suharto visited Papua New Guinea for the first time to finalize the points of a defense agreement. He successfully convinced Papua New Guineans to strengthen cooperation for shared prosperity. The massive Indonesian military offensive in Papua,
Operation Jayapura, weakened the
OPM movement, causing many to flee to the Papua New Guinea border. The Papua New Guinean military culminated in the capture of OPM leaders
Jacob Prai and
John Ondawame, who took refuge in PNG. Entering the 1980s, the OPM movement weakened following Indonesia's massive military operation in Jayapura and also due to internal strife within the OPM leadership. According to
Kopkamtib (Indonesia's special military intelligence agency), remnants of the OPM movement remained and were hiding around the border with PNG. The Indonesian military launched a new military operation, Operation Clean Sweap (
Operasi Sapu Bersih), to hunt down OPM movements on the PNG border. In a press statement, Papua New Guinea's Foreign Minister,
Rabbie Namaliu, protested the Indonesian military's border violations, which triggered a mass exodus of West Papuans to Papua New Guinea. The two governments agreed to resolve the border crisis by updating the 1979 security agreement with a more comprehensive and comprehensive agreement covering refugees, borders, defense and security, and respect for the territorial integrity of both regions. The agreement is called the (
Treaty of Mutual Respect, Cooperation and Friendship) which was signed on October 27, 1986. In the agreement, both countries agreed to "avoid, reduce and limit disputes or conflicts between their countries and respect the territorial integrity of both countries and resolve any differences that may arise only by peaceful means". In 1990, the two countries agreed to establish joint border cooperation which includes joint border patrols and a joint security consultation forum. ==Bilateral Relations==