Ministers seek stronger agency coordination
Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra and Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke discussed how their agencies could work more closely on law enforcement, immigration management and border protection. ANTARA reported the talks, held on October 23, 2026, citing an official statement released Monday.
"Through inter-agency cooperation, both countries should strengthen information sharing, institutional coordination and effective responses," Yusril said. The ministers considered stepping up joint action against cross-border online scams as those operations become increasingly sophisticated.
Yusril welcomed Australia's commitment to bilateral ties and described the countries' longstanding relationship as a basis for expanding cooperation. "Indonesia and Australia have built strong bilateral relations over the years. We hope this partnership, grounded in mutual trust and respect, will continue to grow," he said.
Burke likewise said stronger relations and mutual trust had helped law enforcement agencies and their personnel collaborate more closely. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to institutional cooperation and said sustained work together could benefit their citizens and support regional security and stability.
Police cooperation targets scam networks
The bilateral talks followed the 12th Indonesia-Australia Ministerial Council Meeting on Law and Security in South Jakarta on October 22, another event on Burke's visit. There, he pledged Australia's full support for Indonesia's efforts against online scams.
Burke pointed to existing work between the Australian Federal Police and the Indonesian National Police, known as Polri, with support from the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC). Australia uses AUSTRAC to follow scam-related financial flows and carry out broader financial investigations.
The scale of reported losses provides context for those efforts. According to Australia's National Anti-Scam Centre figures reported by Kompas in August 2026, Australians reported scam losses totaling 2.18 billion Australian dollars in 2025, up 7.8 percent from the previous year.
One joint Indonesia-Australia investigation, Operation Riverton, uncovered a "boiler room" investment-fraud operation targeting more than 300 Australians, with estimated losses exceeding 28 million Australian dollars. Kompas attributed those details to Australian Federal Police JPC3 head Detective Superintendent Marie Anderson. The investigation started in Indonesia and uncovered an offshore scam center.
Kompas also reported that the Australian Federal Police has operated Operation Firestorm since August 2024, coordinating intelligence sharing and joint operations against scam centers abroad with authorities in Thailand and the Philippines. Anderson said the force was also cooperating closely with Indonesia on cybercrime investigations.
Cybercrime cooperation is part of the countries' Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Action Plan for 2025-2029. Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong signed the plan on May 15, 2025.
Eight countries discuss regional security
Burke's Jakarta visit also included the 7th Sub-Regional Meeting on Counter Terrorism and Transnational Security on October 23. He co-chaired it with Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Dudung Abdurachman.
The meeting brought together representatives from Indonesia, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Their discussions covered misuse of artificial intelligence, online scam centers, cybercrime and maritime security.
Australia is to host the 8th Sub-Regional Meeting.
