Freer's remarks had naturally come at Ernst's prompting. East Africa did not wish to see a regional superpower like the Indonesia of its previous life emerge in the Nanyang region in the future.
The Indonesia of its previous life had covered nearly two million square kilometers and had a population approaching three hundred million. It controlled or influenced numerous vital straits and shipping routes around the world, including the Strait of Malacca. Nor did it lack resources—oil, coal, iron ore, copper, bauxite, and more, all in abundant reserves.
The emergence of a country with such great-power potential would be highly detrimental to East Africa's future control over the Nanyang region.
Although East Africa had carved away the territory that Indonesia had possessed on Borneo in its previous life, that was clearly not enough insurance. That was why Freer had proposed to Prime Minister Keppel that the lands on both shores of the Sunda Strait be split off from the East Indies colony.
Freer said, "Your country could establish a special zone in the Sunda Strait and bring such major powers as local finance and the military back under the Dutch government's control."
"We in East Africa would also be pleased to see your country strengthen its divided rule over the East Indies, but we do not think highly of the Dutch colonial policies currently being implemented in the East Indies."
"The construction of a Sunda Strait special zone would be an excellent opportunity. Since both shores remain undeveloped at present, if your country separated this area from the East Indies colony, it would not meet with much resistance from the locals."
"At the same time, you could introduce outsiders such as people from the Far East Empire, Siamese, and Vietnamese, completely isolating this place from the Arab religion population spread