Mehrtens has been held hostage by an armed separatist group since February this year.
"Regarding the development, we are increasingly strengthening communication with traditional leaders there," he said at a press conference at the Presidential Staff Office here on Thursday.
According to him, the communication with traditional and religious leaders in Papua is aimed at preventing any escalation that could put the safety of the hostage at risk.
Moeldoko said that the government needs to calculate the negatives of strategies prepared to save the pilot.
"If we do not do the best calculations, it will be detrimental to all parties," he added.
He noted that communication with traditional and religious leaders has been established by the government through the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) and the National Police (Polri), and it has included discussions on limiting the movement space of the armed group.
"The problem is related to the security of the person concerned (the hostage). If we calculate it by using the force (military), it can be resolved, but there will be an aftermath," he explained.
He expressed the hope that even though it is slow, the persuasive approach that the government is currently taking would help prevent negative impacts.
"If (we do it) slowly, the risk is that it (the process) takes quite a long (time), but the negative aftermath will be less. Those are the choices that will be taken," he said.
Mehrtens, a pilot from Susi Air, was abducted by the Egianus Kogoya-led armed group on February 7, 2023, shortly after landing in Paro, Nduga district, Papua Pegunungan province. The group also torched the Susi Air aircraft that he had piloted.
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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Raka Adji
Editor: Tia Mutiasari
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