I am a researcher from Indonesia. My intellectual formation began at Qatar University, where I earned a B.A. in International Affairs with a concentration in Middle East and Islamic politics. I went on to complete an M.A. in International Politics and a Ph.D. in Politics at the University of Manchester in the UK, which I completed at the age of 26.

My research examines three interlocking relationships: China-Indonesia, Indonesia-Middle East, and China-Middle East. I approach them as a single relational system in which economic interests, strategic calculation, and cultural influence continually shape one another accross regions.

I analyse these ties accross three domains: the political economy of investment, trade, and technology; diplomatic, military, and security cooperation; and soft power, encompassing media, education, culture, and people-to-people exchange. I also study the narratives through which external actors seek to shape public perceptions, and how these are received, contested, or amplified domestically. Rather than treating "China," "Indonesia," or "the Middle East" as unitary actors, I disaggregate them into the ministries, sovereign wealth funds, firms, political parties, religious organisations, universities, media outlets, and influencers through which engagement is actually conducted. I also attend to the subnational scale, exploring how provincial and local governments partner with foreign actors and how influence is negotiated unevenly accross regions.

At the moment, I also dedicate part of my time exploring the global politics of Indonesia's energy transition. This work asks who finances the transition, who benefits from it, and who bears its costs. It looks at the role of Chinese, MENA, and wider international capital, the governance of critical minerals and clean energy supply chains, and the social and environmental consequences of investment in the regions where these projects are built.

I am currently Director of the China-Indonesia Desk and the Indonesia-MENA Desk at the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS) in Jakarta. There, I developed the China-Indonesia Provincial Index, an annually updated measure of Chinese presence across Indonesian provinces, and launched the China-Indonesia Survey, which captures Indonesian public perceptions of China. Meanwhile, as founding Director of Indonesia's first dedicated Indonesia-MENA Desk, I lead research and policy work on economic cooperation, geopolitical dynamics, labour migration, and cultural diplomacy, including the first national survey of Indonesian public perceptions of the MENA region.

I am also a research affiliate at the Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore, and a visiting researcher at Busan University of Foreign Studies, where I was a research professor between 2022 and 2025. I was also an associate at the London School of Economics' IDEAS from 2022 to 2024. Earlier, I was an assistant professor at Universitas Islam Indonesia and a research associate at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), and I have taught at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Universitas Airlangga, Bina Nusantara University, Universitas Paramadina, and Universitas Kristen Indonesia.

I have consulted for, and received grants from, a range of organisations, including Oxfam, USAID, Wikistrat, Freedom House, British Council, Article 19, Indonesia’s Ministry of Finance, the National Research Foundation of Korea, the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, and others. My analysis is regularly cited in the New York Times, South China Morning Post, Nikkei Asia Review, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, and Reuters. I received the Outstanding Research award from the Qatar National Research Fund in 2015 and was named Most Productive Author by The Conversation Indonesia in 2020 and 2022.

Since leaving full-time academia, I have worked primarily in the think tank space, publishing policy papers, reports, and op-eds rather than peer-reviewed articles. The format has changed, but not the method: the same rigorous, evidence-based approach shapes this work, written for policymakers, practitioners, and the wider public.

As a person with a disability, I am deeply committed to disability inclusion. I write on the subject and lead Sekolabilitas, an Indonesia-based NGO working to secure quality education for children with disabilities. I have reflected on my journey in a book in Indonesian, with condensed versions in Indonesian and English. Outside work, I enjoy hiking and computer programming.

I am available for commissioned and, on occasion, pro bono engagements, including research collaboration, consultancy, and public speaking. Enquiries: muhzulfikar AT gmail DOT com.