Australia–Indonesia relations

Australia–Indonesia relations

Australia	Indonesia

Australia–Indonesia relations refers to the foreign relations between Australia and Indonesia, which began as early as 1640 with contact between Indigenous Australians and Makassan trepangers from southwest Sulawesi, and formalised with Australia's full recognition of the Republic of Indonesia in 1949. In recent years, the relationship has been characterised by growing mutual trade of $14.9 billion in 2011–2012, an increase of 8.3% on the previous year, in addition to close links in government, education, and defence under the Lombok Treaty. Both nations are members of the G20, ASEAN Regional Forum, and the Australia-New Zealand-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement. Indonesia received $541.6 million in Australian development aid in 2012–2013.

Before European settlement of Australia, Makassan trepangers from southwest Sulawesi established trading contact with Indigenous communities in northern Australia as early as 1640. They constructed outdoor factories to process trepang, a type of sea cucumber prized by Chinese traders, but did not establish permanent settlements in Australia.

At the height of the trade, Makassans visited thousands of kilometres of Australian coastline, arriving with the monsoon season each December. Their boats, or perahu, carried up to 30 crew members and it is estimated that as many as 1,000 trepangers arrived each year. The crews established temporary settlements at various points along the coast to boil and dry the trepang before returning home to sell their cargo.Marege, meaning 'wild country' was their name for Arnhem Land, from the Cobourg Peninsula to Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

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