Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor) and Indonesia established diplomatic relations on 2 July 2002. Both share the island of Timor. East Timor occupies the east of the island of Timor. In addition, the country includes an exclave in the west of the island and two other small islands. Indonesia owns the rest of Timor and all neighbouring islands to the west, north and east.

Portugal took control of the territory that would become known as Portuguese Timor in the middle of the 18th century, and maintained the eastern half of the island and West Timor was a Dutch possession until World War II as a colony. The land border with Indonesia is 228 km long. Indonesia already had a consulate in Dili during the Portuguese colonial period.

Indonesia invaded the former Portuguese colony in 1975 and annexed East Timor in 1976, maintaining East Timor as its 27th province until a United Nations sponsored referendum in 1999, in which the people of East Timor chose independence. Following a United Nations interim administration, East Timor gained independence as Timor Leste in 2002. Indonesia formalized their relations by establishing an embassy in Dili since October 2002, Timor Leste has an embassy in Jakarta and consulates in Denpasar and Kupang. Relations between the two countries are generally considered highly positive, despite various problems. Numerous agreements regulate cooperation in different areas. East Timorese are visa-free in Indonesia.

Historical background Sukarno's government's view of East Timor Indonesia declared independence from the Dutch East Indies in 1945, following World War II. Nonetheless, Timor-Leste remained as the colony of Portuguese Timor, subject to the Republic of Portugal and its government, Estado Novo. During this time, Indonesia did not express any interest in Portuguese Timor. Though at one point, Indonesia was accused of being behind two rebellions against the Portuguese. In 1961, the Prime Minister of Indonesia, Sukarno visited Portugal. During this visit, Sukarno assured the Prime Minister of Portugal Salazar that Portuguese rights on Timor would be respected. In multiple public statements, Indonesian officials repeatedly stressed that Indonesia had no claim to Portuguese Timor, only claiming the territory of the disbanded Dutch East Indies. The reason for this was also the tying up of Indonesian forces in West New Guinea, where they were trying to legitimize and consolidate power from the Dutch. Doubts remained about the statement, however, due to the prevalent anti western-colonial polemics and rhetoric taken by the government of Indonesia and the public under President Sukarno's Old order (orde lama).

Under the New Order

When Portugal's left-leaning Carnation Revolution succeeded in 1974, Portugal declared its intent to give its former colony independence and local parties formed, intending to contest East Timor's first free elections scheduled for 1976. With Sukarno's arrest and death following the 30 September Movement, Indonesia's government was now led by a western-aligned and ardent anti-communist; General Suharto. Indonesia, then firmly-rooted in the anti-Soviet camp in Southeast Asia, was alarmed by the left-leaning parties that looked set to win that election. With this, the newly made East Timorese party, Timorese Popular Democratic Association (APODETI), was financed by the New Order Government and propagated the annexation to Indonesia. Support for this among the East Timorese population was limited. When it became apparent that the leftist Fretilin would probably take over the leadership of the country in elections, the conservative Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) attempted a coup d'état in August 1975. However, Fretilin emerged victorious from the short civil war. The Portuguese administration had withdrawn from the colonial capital Dili. UDT and APODETI supporters fled to Indonesia. As a result, Indonesian troops, disguised as supporters of these parties, occupied the border regions of East Timor. To counter the threat, Fretilin unilaterally declared independence on 28 November 1975. Indonesia responded by reporting that the leaders of UDT, APODETI and other parties had signed the so-called Balibo Declaration on 30 November 1975, calling for East Timor's annexation to Indonesia. However, the declaration, a draft of the Indonesian secret service, was signed in Bali and not in Balibo, probably under pressure from the Indonesian government. The signatories were more or less prisoners of Indonesia. Xanana Gusmão called the paper the "Balibohong Declaration", a pun on the Indonesian word for "lie" (bohong).

On 7 December 1975, the open invasion of East Timor began with the approval of US president Gerald R. Ford and US secretary of state Henry A. Kissinger.Pilger, John. "Blood on Our Hands" 25 January 1999. Online at johnpilger.com . Retrieved 2 February 2008. In 1976, Indonesia officially declared the annexation of East Timor, but this annexation was not recognised internationally, because Australia and Indonesia were the only nations in the world which recognised East Timor as a province of Indonesia. Other governments, including the governments of the United States, Japan, Canada, and Malaysia, also supported the Indonesian government. A 24-year guerrilla war ensued, during which fighting, reprisals by the occupying forces, hunger and disease killed about 183,000 out of a total East Timorese population of 800,000. Falintil, the armed wing of the leftist East Timorese political party Fretilin became the major source of resistance to Indonesia's annexation of East Timor, but eventually, military resistance to Indonesia's occupation of East Timor was almost eliminated. For 20 years, the poet and semi-professional football goalkeeper Xanana Gusmão led a low-level insurrection against the occupation, and diplomatic pressure was also placed on Indonesia. Gusmão became Timor-Leste's first president following its independence.The President Behind the Nation The Christian Science Monitor, Dan Murphy, May 20, 2002 Only after the fall of Suharto's dictatorship did Indonesia agree to hold an independence referendum in East Timor in 1999. The result was clearly in favour of complete independence for East Timor, whereupon Indonesian security forces and pro-Indonesian militias overran East Timor once again, with a wave of violence in Operation Thunder. A large number of people either had to flee their homes or they were forcibly deported. Large parts of East Timor's infrastructure were destroyed.

Pro-Independence and Pro-Democracy student solidarity

Suharto's grip on the East Timorese and Indonesian populace waned over time as the 1997 Asian financial crisis devastated the Indonesian economy. As the momentum of the student-led movement grew, so did the frequency and scale of protests and acts of civil disobedience. Demonstrations, strikes, and other forms of protest became a common occurrence, particularly on university campuses. University campuses in Indonesia provided a space for critical thinking, discussion, and organization. The students' courage and determination in the face of harsh government crackdowns inspired others to join the resistance movement. East Timorese students, both within East Timor and studying abroad, began to form student organizations and engage in clandestine activities to counter the oppressive regime. One of the earliest and most influential student organizations was the National Resistance of East Timorese Students (RENETIL), founded in Jakarta in the mid-1980s. RENETIL served as a platform for East Timorese students to exchange ideas, discuss strategies, and coordinate actions against the Indonesian government's policies. It also played a crucial role in raising international awareness about the situation in East Timor.

One of the most significant incidents was the Santa Cruz massacre in 1991, where Indonesian security forces brutally suppressed a peaceful demonstration in Dili, East Timor's capital. This led RENETIL to organize its first demonstration in Jakarta a week later. Future East Timorese politician, Fernando de Araújo, was among the 72 students leading the protest. While the protest led to his and other students' arrest on November 24 and their subsequent charge with subversion, resulting in nine years of imprisonment, RENETIL persisted. RENETIL, now isolated, attempted to "Indonize" the East Timor conflict by promoting the issue and establishing contact with Indonesian opposition groups fighting against the Suharto regime. From here, joint Indonesian-East Timorese Student Organizations sprung up across campuses such like the People's Democratic Union (PRD) and the Student Solidarity for Democracy (SMID). RENETIL also created the Indonesian People's Solidarity with the Maubere People (SPRIM) and also began to infiltrate the ( (IMPETTU or IMPETU)), the state sponsored Indonesian-East Timorese student organization. The Indonesian military and the Indonesian governor of East Timor, José Abílio Osório Soares, then began to veto candidates they did not like. Eventually by gradual reform, IMPETTU was fully without government oversight. By 1996, IMPETTU was formerly led by future East Timorese Deputy Prime Minister and former RENETIL member, Mariano Sabino Lopes.

With connections from East Timor, copies of the Santa Cruz massacre footage were distributed and circulated within Indonesia, granting more Indonesian citizens access to uncensored depictions of their government's actions. As a result, numerous other pro-democracy student factions and their publications within Indonesia began openly and critically addressing not only East Timor, but also the "New Order" regime, as well as the broader history and future of Indonesia.

The 1991 Santa Cruz massacre led to a rethink within the Indonesian democracy movement on the East Timor issue. From here, East Timorese Pro-independence students usually found common ground with Indonesian Pro-democracy students. Eventually, both factions can be found in solidarity, participating in protests across Indonesia and often intermingle when organizing against the Suharto regime. Thus East Timorese students became a backbone to Indonesia's path to democracy and East Timor's Independence. On the other hand, the democracy movement itself was driven by the East Timorese students. East Timorese students were often formed and known as the heart of the groups and also promoted a more militant line of the protests. While Indonesians protested mostly peacefully at demonstrations, the East Timorese threw stones and burned pictures of President Suharto, affecting the military's response to the demonstrations and the movement.

Such cooperation was notably evident during the 1995 embassy occupations in Jakarta, where students from RENETIL, IMPETTU, and the underground Timorese Socialist Association (AST) were joined by Indonesian pro-democracy activists and students from various campuses across Jakarta. They came together with the common goal of demonstrating and occupying several embassies throughout Jakarta, primarily focusing on the Dutch and Russian embassies. This also occurred in conjunction with both the summit meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation where president Bill Clinton was visiting. With the help of Indonesian activists, some twenty-nine East Timorese students climbed over the wall of the American embassy in Jakarta on November 12, as the APEC meeting began, and proceeded to occupy the grounds for the next twelve days. President Bill Clinton, without acknowledging the goals of the protests, stated that they were peaceful. In light to save face, the Indonesian government assured the delegation that the protestors weren't going to be prosecuted. After the arrest, the protesters were deported and received asylum in Portugal. Some East Timorese students who also occupied and jumped over the fences of various embassies were also deported to Portugal.