Indonesia's foreign minister says she immediately ruled out a prisoner swap suggested by her Australian counterpart, Julie Bishop, as a way to save the lives of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.
Minister Retno Marsudi has also expressed her confidence that relations between Australia and Indonesia will survive the tensions that have arisen around the impending execution of the two Australians.
Ms Marsudi told journalists in Jakarta on Friday that Ms Bishop phoned her in New Zealand on Tuesday to ask for a "pause" to consider options for saving the two Australians.
"We discussed several things from that phone conversation," Ms Marsudi said.
"One of those was the offer from the Australian foreign minister to have a prisoner swap with our nationals in Australia.
"I immediately said that we don't have a legal base which enables Indonesia to fulfil such a request."
Ms Marsudi said she agreed, "as a buddy" to convey the request to Indonesian President Joko Widodo and phoned him immediately after the conversation but his position was the same.
The confirmation of Indonesia's unflinching stance came as Ms Bishop said on Friday she had written to Ms Marsudi after their telephone conversation - an exchange that has been reported as "tense".
The letter, delivered on Thursday, set out in more detail the proposal for a "pause" while officials explore a prisoner swap, or other options to spare the lives of the two Australians.
Mr Joko has already rejected the idea of a prisoner swap for Chan and Sukumaran, who were sentenced in 2006 for their parts in a plot to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin from Bali to Australia.
"No way," he said on Thursday.
Amid the ongoing tensions, anger has arisen over photographs of a smiling police chief posing with Chan and Sukumaran on a plane during their transfer on Wednesday to Nusakambangan, the island off central Java where, along with eight others, they are to be shot.
Ms Bishop said an official complaint had been lodged over the "undignified and degrading treatment" during the transfer, and the "disproportionate use and display of force, including a paramilitary escort and planes and a military presence and dramatic footage as if it was some massive military exercise".
The transfer of the two Australians under heavy guard and fighter jet escort was in stark contrast to the treatment of a Nigerian drug smuggler who on the same day was transported in a van.
"It seemed that our citizens were singled out for treatment designed to maximise publicity that was certainly at odds with the treatment of other citizens of other countries in the same position," Ms Bishop said.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott described the photographs as "unbecoming".
"I thought they showed a lack or respect and lack of dignity," he said.
Mr Abbott's request for another telephone conversation with President Joko has so far been unsuccessful.
"But I do want to assure people that in a whole host of different ways, we are continuing to make our position crystal clear," he said on Friday.
Ms Marsudi said reports Indonesia's ambassador to Australia, Nadjib Riphat Kesoema, had been summoned to receive a complaint about the photographs were not correct
She said she was confident Australia and Indonesia's relationship would survive the tensions over the Bali Nine pair.
"We understand the request because it's every government's effort to protect their nationals, however, once again the issue of the sovereignty of law of other countries kindly needs to be respected," she said.
Ms Bishop confirmed there had not yet been any word on a date for the executions.
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