President’s Indonesia Visit – Milestone in Strategic Partnership

The visit to Indonesia by Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc is an important milestone in the bilateral strategic partnership as the President and his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo agreed that the two countries will soon build an action plan for 2024 – 2028.

Rosy Huong

huongthhd@gmail.com December 24, 2022 | 00:00

President’s Indonesia Visit – Milestone in Strategic Partnership

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc (L) and his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo. Photo: VGP

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation arrived back in Hanoi on December 23 afternoon, wrapping up a State visit to Indonesia at the invitation of President Joko Widodo, VietnamPlus reported.

During the trip, the Vietnamese leader held talks with his counterpart Joko Widodo, had meetings with parliamentary leaders of Indonesia, attended a state-level banquet hosted by the host President, met with representatives of the Vietnamese community, visited the Jakarta-based Secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and met with ASEAN Secretary-General Lim Jock Hoi.

He also received leaders of the Indonesia-Vietnam Friendship Association, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN), and some of the large enterprises of the archipelago nation.

The visit was an important milestone in the countries' strategic partnership as Presidents Phuc and Widodo agreed that Vietnam and Indonesia will soon build an action plan for 2024 - 2028; strive to develop more balanced trade and raise revenue to over $15 billion by 2028; step up mutual investment in new fields such as the digital economy, digital transformation, green economy, and renewable energy; and enhance ties in defence, security, education-training, and tourism.

At the talks between the two Presidents. Photo: VGP

They also witnessed the signing and exchange of cooperation documents on drug trafficking prevention, energy, and mineral resources.

Talking to the media after their meetings, the two leaders said Vietnam and Indonesia have completed negotiations on the delimitation of their exclusive economic zones in line with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Visiting the ASEAN Secretariat’s headquarters and meeting the ASEAN Secretary-General as well as diplomats of the bloc’s member nations there, President Phuc stressed Vietnam attaches special importance to the relationship with ASEAN in its foreign policy, and that it will make active contributions to build a united and strong ASEAN and promote the bloc’s centrality in the regional architecture.

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta, Indonesia. Photo: VNA

Regarding the visit, Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son affirmed that it obtained comprehensive, substantive, and concrete outcomes, especially in important areas, according to Nhan dan (People) newspaper.

The visit has opened up new opportunities for bilateral cooperation and demonstrated the leaders’ determination to develop the Vietnam - Indonesia strategic partnership to a new height, thereby generating practical benefits for the two peoples and contributing to a united and self-reliant ASEAN Community for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world at large, Son said./.

This is the first trip to Indonesia by a key Vietnamese leader after the 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam and also the first by a Vietnamese President over the past nine years as the two nations are preparing for the 10th founding anniversary of strategic partnership.

Vietnam and Indonesia established diplomatic relations in 1955 and set up the strategic partnership in 2013.

The two countries have signed many agreements on cooperation in various fields, including an action programme to implement their strategic partnership for 2019 - 2023. Currently, they have four pairs of twinned provinces/cities, namely Hanoi and Jakarta, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Padang, Hue and Yogyakarta, and Soc Trang and Lampung.

Indonesia is currently Vietnam's third largest trade partner in ASEAN while Vietnam is Indonesia's fourth largest trade partner in the bloc. Their trade value hit $8.2 billion in 2020; $11.5 billion in 2021, exceeding the target of $10 billion set by senior leaders for the first time; and $11.6 billion in the first ten months of 2022.

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