After two years of online trainings Clingendael was delighted to welcome a group of 10 senior diplomats from Indonesia for an in-person training course focused on identifying strategic opportunities for Indonesia's foreign policy. This included lectures on cyber security and high-level diplomacy, as well as skills training in advanced negotiation and crisis communication.

A special relationship

Clingendael has first trained Indonesian diplomats in 2004 and has since welcomed many junior, midcareer and senior Indonesian diplomats to the Hague. This is one of the longest ongoing training collaborations of the Clingendael Institute. This special relationship was emphasized by both the Director of the Clingendael Academy Ron Ton and Indonesian Ambassador to the Netherlands H.E. Mayerfas in their speeches during the official opening of the programme.

Preparing for the next steps

The course was focused on preparing these senior diplomats for the next steps in their careers, combining interesting lectures with interactive workshops meant to enhance various strategic decision-making skills, including negotiation, media training and intercultural communication. The programme included a combination of Clingendael trainers and external speakers who touched upon a variety of topics and challenged the participants to think strategically about the challenges facing Indonesia. Furthermore, the groups paid visits to the Global Center on Adaptation in its floating office in Rotterdam and to the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.