STRATEGI DIPLOMASI EKONOMI INDONESIA DALAM MEMPERTAHANKAN KEBIJAKAN HILIRISASI NIKEL PASCA-PUTUSAN WTO DS592 - Michael Hernan Otniel; Nurbani Adine Gustianti (JOURNAL OF SCIENCE AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, 2026)
Abstract: This study examines Indonesia's layered economic diplomacy strategy in maintaining its sovereign nickel downstreaming policy following the adverse World Trade Organization (WTO) DS592 ruling. Utilizing a qualitative approach with a descriptive-analytical design, this research evaluates the pivotal timeline of 2022–2026 to capture post-dispute dynamics, institutional adaptations, and domestic governance digitalizations. Data were gathered through documentary research from official WTO dispute archives, ministerial performance reports, and credible macroeconomic publications. The findings demonstrate that Indonesia successfully protected its industrial policy space from external interventions by synergizing three diplomatic pillars: leveraging multilateral institutional paralysis through tactical legal maneuvers ("appealing into the void"), isolating bilateral trade frictions within the IEU-CEPA negotiations alongside the establishment of an Ad Hoc Joint Task Force, and aggressively locking in physical foreign direct investment for high-value smelter ecosystems from East Asian partners. Furthermore, this policy space was domestically institutionalized through the integration of the SIMBARA digital governance system to optimize state revenue and resource transparency. In conclusion, this empirical phenomenon challenges liberal institutionalism’s core assumption of automatic compliance by proving that a Global South middle power can effectively counter multilateral regulatory pressures and shift from a traditional raw material supplier to a sovereign industrialized nation by utilizing critical mineral leverage. Keywords: Critical Minerals, Economic Diplomacy, WTO Dispute, Resource Nationalism, Policy Space   Abstrak: Penelitian ini mengkaji strategi diplomasi ekonomi berlapis Indonesia dalam mempertahankan kebijakan kedaulatan hilirisasi nikel pasca putusan sengketa Organisasi Perdagangan Dunia (World Trade Organization/WTO) DS592 yang merugikan Indonesia. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan desain deskriptif-analitis untuk menganalisis periode krusial 2022–2026 guna menangkap dinamika pascasengketa, adaptasi kelembagaan, dan digitalisasi tata kelola domestik. Data diperoleh melalui studi dokumentasi yang bersumber dari arsip resmi sengketa WTO, laporan kinerja kementerian, serta berbagai publikasi makroekonomi yang kredibel. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa Indonesia berhasil mempertahankan ruang kebijakan (policy space) industri nasional dari intervensi eksternal melalui sinergi tiga pilar diplomasi, yaitu pemanfaatan kelumpuhan institusional WTO melalui manuver hukum taktis berupa appealing into the void, isolasi friksi perdagangan bilateral melalui perundingan Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) dan pembentukan Ad Hoc Joint Task Force, serta penguncian investasi asing langsung (foreign direct investment/FDI) secara agresif untuk pengembangan ekosistem smelter bernilai tambah tinggi dari mitra Asia Timur. Lebih lanjut, ruang kebijakan tersebut diinstitusionalisasikan secara domestik melalui integrasi sistem tata kelola digital SIMBARA guna mengoptimalkan penerimaan negara dan meningkatkan transparansi pengelolaan sumber daya. Kesimpulannya, fenomena empiris ini menantang asumsi utama neoliberalisme institusional mengenai kepatuhan otomatis terhadap rezim internasional dengan menunjukkan bahwa kekuatan menengah dari Global South mampu secara efektif menghadapi tekanan regulasi multilateral dan bertransformasi dari pemasok bahan mentah tradisional menjadi negara industri yang berdaulat melalui pemanfaatan daya ungkit mineral kritis. Kata kunci: Mineral Kritis, Diplomasi Ekonomi, Sengketa WTO, Nasionalisme Sumber Daya, Ruang Kebijakan.