Turnbull urges Jokowi to go global

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called on "charismatic" Indonesian President Joko Widodo to become a more global spokesperson.

"He is the democratically-elected leader of the largest Muslim nation in the world - that is one big platform," Mr Turnbull told the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington on Monday afternoon (local time).

The Indonesian president's popularity and charisma was inspiring, Mr Turnbull said, and he encouraged him to "speak more widely and to speak globally".

Mr Turnbull said President Joko was a "powerful advocate" for moderate and tolerant Islam.

"He condemns the extremists, not just for their violence, most of which after all is directed against other Muslims, but for the way they defame Islam, his faith," he said.

Mr Joko could play a "vital role" in promoting a counter-narrative from within Islam to defeat the Islamic State group and other violent extremists.