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ItemForeign policy legitimacy and moderate Islamic identity in Indonesia: the Megawati government’s response to the International War on Terrorism (2001-2004)( 2017)Since 2001, the government of Indonesia had made frequent reference to moderate Islam as a part of the country’s international identity. Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Deplu) underscored in its various official statements that the country is the home to moderate Muslims and hailed its moderation as a true face of the Islamic tradition of tolerance and peace. The reference to moderate Islamic identity raises an empirical puzzle given the non-Islamic identity of Indonesia. Deplu had always represented the country’s pluralism in terms of religion, culture, and ethnicity as the essential characters of Indonesia. Moreover, this national identity had been frequently referred to as the reason why foreign policy elites had never included Islam into the state symbols abroad. This study, therefore, asks why did the government construct moderate Islamic identity in its foreign policy discourse and practice? This dissertation traces the processes leading to the construction of moderate Islamic identity in the foreign policy official statements during Megawati’s terms (2001-2004). It argues that that the government’s views of its “foreign policy legitimacy” shape the construction of this identity. More specifically, in response to challenges by domestic Muslim groups, the U.S., and its allies to its foreign policy decisions with regards to international war on terrorism, the government constructed moderate Islamic identity as a frame for the legitimacy of its foreign policy values (“foreign policy value legitimacy”); of its foreign policy decision or practice as seen by domestic actors (“domestic foreign policy legitimacy); and as perceived by external actors (“external foreign policy legitimacy”). The exploration of leaders’ views of their foreign policy legitimacy helps to explain the government’s reference to Islam as an identity in the context of identity dilemma. It contributes to the literature of Islam in Indonesia’s foreign policy by advancing the understanding that Islam, as a fluid and contested identity and values, could become both constraints and opportunities for foreign policy leaders to act.