If the execution last month of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran suggested that Indonesian President Joko Widodo has little regard for Australia, the missive from Indonesia's foreign ministry on Thursday has helped explain why.

Responding to Tony Abbott's blunt refusal to resettle any of the thousands of Rohingya asylum seekers besieging south-east Asia, the foreign ministry took only a few hours to accuse its southern neighbour of hypocrisy and selfishness.

Tony Abbott and Joko Widodo at the G20 in November last year. Credit:AFP

Why were countries who are not signatories to the UN refugee convention like Indonesia prepared to welcome the Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar, while Australia was not?

"Countries that are parties to the convention on refugees have a responsibility to ensure they believe in what they sign," ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said. "If you believe it when you sign it, you should act upon it."