New Order
With Suharto finally elected as President in 1968, Malik continued to serve as the Foreign Affairs Minister. In 1970, Malik solidified his position with the regime by officially joining Golkar. Malik would also represent Indonesia and deputize for Suharto in summits with Suharto not showing much interest in foreign policy in the first years of his Presidency.
As Foreign Affairs Minister, Malik had had differences with Suharto's ABRI Generals such as General Maraden Panggabean over the way in which Indonesia should approach its Foreign Policy in Southeast Asia. The Generals wanted Indonesia and its regional neighbors in ASEAN to have a closer security cooperation which in effect. The Generals were also in favor of sending Indonesian troops to help the South Vietnamese in the Vietnam War. On the other hand, Malik insisted that ASEAN should only be about economic, not military cooperation. In this he was supported by Suharto. Malik also adopted a softer stance towards the People's Republic of China who the Suharto regime saw as supporters of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).
In 1971, Malik was chosen as President of the United Nations General Assembly.
Malik was briefly involved in the crisis that would lead to the invasion of East Timor. Malik had assured an East Timorese delegation led by José Ramos-Horta that Indonesia would not be involved in the crisis in East Timor. Suharto at first supported this stance towards East Timor but in 1975, was convinced by his Generals to intervene and invade.
In 1977, Malik was replaced as Foreign Minister as he took on the Chairmanship of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)
Read more about this topic: Adam Malik
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