Indonesia

Nuclear-weapon-free state

Has joined the TPNW

SIGNED

RATIFIED

IN FORCE

SIGNED

20 September 2017

RATIFIED

24 September 2024

IN FORCE

23 December 2024

Status

Indonesia has signed and ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), and has been legally bound by it since 23 December 2024.

Signature and ratification

Retno Marsudi, the then-minister of foreign affairs of Indonesia, signed the TPNW at a high-level ceremony in New York when it opened for signature on 20 September 2017. She deposited the country’s instrument of ratification with the UN secretary-general on 24 September 2024.

Indonesia was the equal 71st state to ratify or accede to the TPNW, and is the largest state party by population.

Retno Marsudi, the then-minister of foreign affairs of Indonesia, signs the TPNW in 2017. Photo: ICAN

The national parliament of Indonesia, or people’s representative council, unanimously approved ratification of the TPNW on 21 November 2023, and the ratification law took effect domestically on 20 December 2023.

Following parliamentary approval, Marsudi said Indonesia’s ratification of the TPNW aligned with its constitutional mandate to promote peace and security, and sent a clear message to the world that “the possession and use of nuclear weapons cannot be justified for any reason”.

“With this ratification, our national legal infrastructure will also become stronger to encourage international peace,” she added. “I hope that more countries will ratify the TPNW to put pressure on nuclear-possessing countries and also to create strong anti-nuclear weapons norms.”

In 2022, the then-president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, submitted the TPNW to the people’s representative council. The council’s first commission held a series of meetings with government officials and academics to examine the treaty before approving it.

Stakeholders participate in a meeting in Yogyakarta in 2020 to discuss Indonesia’s ratification of the TPNW. Photo: IIS-UGM

Marsudi deposits Indonesia’s instrument of ratification in 2024.

National position

Indonesia described the TPNW’s entry into force in 2021 as “a very important milestone”, providing a “legal framework to delegitimise nuclear weapons” and raising “moral barriers against their threat”. It called on “countries that have not signed the treaty to do so and be part of the positive force towards global nuclear disarmament”.

In 2022, it emphasised that the TPNW complements the Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 and that the abolition of nuclear weapons is needed “for humanity to thrive and prevail”.

In 2024, it said that the global disarmament architecture “continues to deteriorate”, with the TPNW being the only initiative “offering us some optimism”. It called upon “all states that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the TPNW as soon as possible, to reaffirm [their] commitment to nuclear disarmament”.

Implementation

In accordance with Article 2 of the TPNW, Indonesia submitted a declaration to the UN secretary-general on 21 January 2025 confirming that it does not own, possess, or control nuclear weapons, has never done so, and does not host any other state’s nuclear weapons on its territory.

As required by Article 3, Indonesia has a comprehensive safeguards agreement in force with the International Atomic Energy Agency to guard against the misuse of nuclear facilities and materials. It also has an additional protocol in force.

Per Article 12, Indonesia has promoted universal adherence to the TPNW, including by co-sponsoring and consistently voting in favour of an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to the treaty “at the earliest possible date”.

“In achieving nuclear disarmament, we shall aim for the universalisation of the [TPNW]”, Indonesia said in 2022.

Meetings of states parties

Indonesia observed the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW in 2022. “Indonesia is proud to join this notable day, to be part of the right side of history,” it said. “Nuclear disarmament remains our shared highest priority.” It later remarked that the success of the meeting “offered hope in the nuclear disarmament landscape”.

Indonesia also observed the second meeting of states parties in 2023, describing it as an opportunity to “consolidate our collective efforts in pursuing a world without nuclear weapons” and to provide momentum for all states, including those outside the treaty, to fulfil their disarmament commitments.

It said that the TPNW serves as a complement to other treaties on nuclear disarmament and expressed its commitment to universalising the TPNW and its norms. “We hope that [Indonesia’s ratification] will encourage more countries to ratify the TPNW and provide impetus for the participation of nuclear-armed states,” it added.

Having becoming a state party to the TPNW on 23 December 2024, Indonesia participated in the third meeting of states parties in 2025.

TPNW negotiations

Indonesia participated in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and was among 122 states that voted in favour of its adoption. It served as a vice-president of the bureau.

In its opening statement to the negotiating conference, Indonesia argued for “a shift in the principles of nuclear disarmament” to emphasise the “humanitarian imperative” and “render the deterrence doctrine obsolete”. It described the conference as “the culmination of decades of international endeavours on nuclear disarmament”.

In its closing statement, Indonesia celebrated the fact that after “extensive negotiations” states were able to agree on a text that, while imperfect in its view, is “significantly crucial in our efforts toward nuclear disarmament”.

In 2016, Indonesia co-sponsored the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”.

Before the negotiations

Indonesia was among 127 states that endorsed a “humanitarian pledge” in 2015–16 to cooperate “in efforts to stigmatise, prohibit, and eliminate nuclear weapons”. The pledge was instrumental in building momentum and support for convening the negotiations.

In 2013, a regional roundtable meeting was held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, with officials, academics, and campaigners from across Southeast Asia to discuss “the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons and the prospects for a ban”.

Students from the Universitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta demonstrate their support for a global ban on nuclear weapons in 2015. Photo: ISS-UGM

Further information

Nuclear Weapons Ban Monitor

Indonesia

Nuclear-weapon-free state

Has joined the TPNW

Status

Signature and ratification

National position

Implementation

Meetings of states parties

TPNW negotiations

Before the negotiations

Further information

Local Partner Organizations

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