Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said that there is more cooperation that can be done between Turkey and Indonesia in the defense industries sector, and that the two countries decided to form a forum with a specific format for the participation of the foreign and defense ministers of the two countries to discuss policies and strategies for cooperation in this field.
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Minister Marsudi spoke about the bilateral relations between Turkey and Indonesia and the most prominent regional developments.
Marsudi added that she is visiting Turkey as part of a European tour, and that she and her Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, discussed bilateral relations and the geopolitical situation during their meeting.
She explained that she met Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara several months ago, in addition to the continuous phone contacts between them, and that the Indonesian Defense Minister and parliamentarians visited Turkey more than once, noting that Turkey is one of the important stations for officials in her country.
She indicated that her country is currently making the necessary preparations for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s scheduled visit to Indonesia.
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Regarding the Turkish-Indonesian relations, Marsudi stressed that they are strong relations that will be further strengthened in the future, noting that trade between the two countries increased last year by 51 percent compared to 2020.
She pointed out that the two countries are currently negotiating a comprehensive economic partnership agreement, noting that trade and investment figures between the two countries will rise with the signing of the agreement.
Marsudi stated that she discussed with her Turkish counterpart the 2nd dialogue format, which means that the foreign and defense ministers of the two countries will be in constant contact in the future.
And she added, “We plan to launch a high-level strategic council between Turkey and Indonesia during the upcoming visit of President Erdogan.”
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She added that trade is one of the most important areas in which cooperation can be developed, noting that the two countries aim to bring the volume of bilateral trade between them to 10 billion dollars.
She expressed her confidence in the possibility of achieving this goal with the signing of the comprehensive economic partnership agreement between the two countries.
Marsudi indicated that investment is among the areas that have witnessed a remarkable development between the two countries, in addition to trade.
She added, “On my recent visit to Turkey, I brought a state-owned infrastructure company with me, and the company conducted very fruitful meetings, and the two countries can cooperate in the future in implementing projects in other countries.”
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She explained that cooperation in the defense sector will be one of the priorities of the two countries, and that it will not be limited to purchasing defense industry products from Turkey only, but must be a strategic cooperation that includes manufacturing, production and joint development, noting that President Erdogan discussed this matter with his Indonesian counterpart, Joko Widodo.
And she added, “We are ready for such cooperation, and that is why we decided to form a 2 2 format dialogue forum in which foreign and defense ministers from both countries will meet to discuss policies and strategies for cooperation in the field of defense industries.”
Marsudi stated that Indonesia attaches great importance to this type of meeting in the form of 2 2 and holds it with only three countries: Japan, Australia and South Korea, and Turkey will be the fourth country, stressing that this shows the extent of the importance that Indonesia attaches to Turkey.
On Indonesia’s position on the Russian-Ukrainian war, Marsudi said that Jakarta’s position on the war is similar to Ankara’s, and that the Indonesian position is clear and explicit regarding respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries.
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She noted that Jakarta has been calling for a cease-fire since the first day of the outbreak of the war and supports creating the right atmosphere for successful negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.
Marsudi praised Turkey’s role in mediating between Kyiv and Mosko and the effort it is making to stop the war.
