April 2026

In brief · 12 stories · outlook -7 ↑ better than March · mostly Environment & Foreign policy

It was another tough month, though slightly less so than March. The peacekeepers' deaths and doubts about the courts kept the mood low; the careful diplomacy with the US, Japan, and Russia was steadier ground, but not a turnaround.

• The heaviest news came from abroad, when three Indonesian UN peacekeepers were killed in Lebanon, a loss that put Indonesia's overseas missions in the global spotlight.
• Foreign observers tracked a careful balancing act as Prabowo signed a big US defense pact and then met Putin, touring Japan, Korea and Russia to lock in energy deals during the oil shock.
• Rule-of-law coverage stayed critical: an acid-attack trial against soldiers opened while Google executives testified that the graft case against former minister Nadiem looked shaky.

Why it matters How Indonesia balances the US, Russia, and its Asian neighbours shapes the trade and energy deals that reach your wallet. Watch the acid-attack and Nadiem cases too, since they signal whether the courts protect ordinary people or bend to power.