Since taking office a year ago, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has pursued a stridently nationalist foreign policy that marks a departure from the multilateralism of his predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. While diplomats in Jakarta voice concerns about the foreign policy shift, some expect the government to moderate its rhetoric as the president consolidates power and gains more experience.
A decade ago Widodo, or Jokowi as he is widely known, was a small-scale furniture maker with a local degree in forestry. His rise to the presidency of the world's fourth-largest nation was a stunning political achievement, built on his outsider status, a reputation for probity while in local government, and his folksy, "man-of-the-people" manner.
