Türkiye's Erdoga wants Turkish involvement in IKN project

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated during a bilateral meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java Province on Feb. 12, 2025 that Türkiye wants Turkish infrastructure companies to be involved in the Nusantara Capital City development project.

"We are also committed to participating in the IKN project by involving our world-class construction companies," he said in a joint statement.

Indonesia and Türkiye have signed 12 cooperation agreements at the meeting in the fields of religion and education, energy and mineral resources, technology and higher education, health and medicine, defense industry, trade, investment, industrial cooperation committee, agriculture, television broadcasting institutions, radio broadcasting institutions, as well as news agency cooperation agreements.

Erdogan views the expansion of cooperation between the two countries in various fields as important to Türkiye. Meanwhile, Prabowo was honored to welcome Erdogan and his delegation because it coincided with the 75^th anniversary of Indonesia-Türkiye diplomatic relations. Prabowo said Indonesia and Türkiye have a spiritual and emotional relationship that has existed for hundreds of years during the Ottoman Empire. 

"Today, President Erdogan and I are holding the first high level strategic [cooperation] council (HLSCC) meeting. This is the highest bilateral relationship mechanism between both countries," he said.

Prabowo said that Indonesia and Türkiye have agreed to increase trade between the two countries and accelerate the finalization of the Indonesia-Türkiye Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

In the meantime, the fate of IKN's development has been increasingly unclear after its budget was blocked amid state budget cuts. The issue arose after Public Works Minister Dody Hanggodo said that no budget had been realized for the new capital city project in 2025. He is currently overseeing the finalizing of the PU Ministry's budget, which was cut to Rp29.57 trillion due to efficiency instructions from Prabowo.

"The budget [for infrastructure] is all blocked," said Dody when met at the Republic of Indonesia Parliament Complex after a meeting with Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR) Commission V on Feb. 6, 2024. "The progress is to buy lunch for the Minister," he joked.

When contacted on Feb, 6, 2025, IKN Spokesperson Troy Pantouw tatedthat the construction of IKN will continue continuing. He said that the IKN Authority would continue to carry out construction according to Prabowo's direction.

"This (the issue of IKN being stopped by Prabowo) is not true. According to the President's direction, focus on completing the construction of legislative and judicial offices along with their supporting ecosystems," he said.