The Synergy of Strategic Leadership and State Defense Governance: A Literature Analysis of Civil–Military Relations Models
Abstract
In the contemporary era, Indonesia's national defense can no longer be understood merely as the deployment of military force; rather, it is a matter of strategic governance requiring policy coherence, inter-agency coordination, democratic accountability, and the ability to adapt to multidimensional threats. Current defense dynamics indicate that civil-military relations are relatively stable yet remain in a transitional phase, as the strengthening of civilian capacity, democratic oversight, and the clear delineation of civil-military roles have not yet fully matured. The central issue addressed in this paper is the lack of integration between studies of strategic leadership, public value governance, and civil-military relations in explaining the effectiveness of Indonesia's defense governance. The proposed solution is an integrative model that positions strategic leadership as the guiding force, civil-military relations as the connecting mechanism, and defense governance as the desired outcome. The paper concludes that Indonesia's defense reform must focus on strengthening strategic leadership, institutional civilian capacity, military professionalism, and parliamentary oversight, alongside fostering a defense governance system that is democratic, adaptive, and oriented toward public value.
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