Strategi Diplomasi Indonesia Dalam Menjaga Kedaulatan Maritim di Laut Natuna Utara (Perspekstif Teori Mandala)

Abstract

As the largest archipelagic country in the world, Indonesia has a strategic interest in maintaining its maritime
sovereignty, especially in the North Natuna Sea area which is rich in natural resources and has high geopolitical
value. This area faces threats from China's unilateral claims through the Nine-Dash Line policy which is
contrary to the principles of UNCLOS 1982 and disrupts Indonesia's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This
study aims to analyze Indonesia's diplomatic strategy in maintaining sovereignty in the region using the
Mandala theory perspective. The Mandala theory, which originates from the traditional Asian power system,
offers a conceptual framework that places the state as the center of power with a layered circle of influence. This
study uses a qualitative method through a literature review approach by analyzing various academic sources,
government policies, and scientific news data. The results of the study show that Indonesia's diplomatic
strategy includes strengthening power (Mandala Inti), forming a central regional alliance (Sandhi), an active
free neutral stance (Asana), and the duality of hard and soft strategies (Dvaidhibhava). The integration of the
active free diplomacy approach and the Mandala theory allows Indonesia to implement an adaptive, contextual,
and local value-based foreign policy in the face of geopolitical pressure. This study contributes to the
development of Indonesian diplomacy studies by enriching theoretical perspectives through non-Western
approaches that are relevant to the character of the Southeast Asian region.