UNAIR NEWS – The Postgraduate School of Universitas Airlangga held a guest lecture discussing efforts towards the formation of strategic leadership to achieve Re-Balancing Power at the Majapahit Hall, ASEEC Tower, on Saturday, December 23, 2023.
Indonesian Military (TNI) Vice Admiral Prof. Dr. Amarulla Octavian and Vice Chairman of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) attended the lecture as the guest speaker. He discussed the issues in leadership research and the efforts to develop strategic leadership to achieve Re-Balancing Power.
“A leader should be optimistic but cautious, cautious yet optimistic,” he said.
He believed that such principles would significantly impact the success of leadership. Prof Octavian explained the concept by reflecting on the South China Sea issue, particularly from Indonesia’s perspective.
“The South China Sea plays a crucial role for Indonesia, covering from territorial sovereignty enforcement to economic factors, which contributes 34 to 45 percent of non-oil and gas exports and imports,” Prof. Octavian added.
Despite the significant role of the South China Sea, there lie substantial threats to Indonesia. For instance, the potential for damage to strategic partnerships in the sector of alliances. It also poses crucial issues in the field of maritime border security.
“Today, we can see multiple violations occurred, from the illegal fishing to unauthorized research activity,” he said.
The spectrum of non-military threats will lead to new threat schemes in the military sector. One of them is the emergence of terrorism and radicalism.
Strategic Leadership for Rebalancing Power
To face those threats, Prof. Octavian emphasized the need to develop strategic leadership for rebalancing power. The balance of power theory in international relations suggests that when the power of a nation is unbalanced within the international system, the states will attempt to restore its power through various means, including military action.
“From this theory, we can conclude that an imbalance of power can lead to instability and may potentially result in conflict,” he said.
Pursuing balance of power requires various elements such as military strength, alliances, coalitions, diplomacy, and negotiations while minimizing instability. By implementing strategic leadership and preparing these supportive factors, Re-Balancing Power can be achieved.
Author: Rosita
Editor: Nuri Hermawan
