INDIA AND INDONESIA SIGN 15 AGREEMENTS
JAKARTA: India and Indonesia on Wednesday elevated their bilateral ties to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and called for freedom of navigation in the Indo-pacific region as they signed 15 agreements including one on defence cooperation after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held “productive discussions” with President Joko Widodo.
Prime Minister Modi, who arrived in Jakarta on Tuesday night on his first-ever official visit to Indonesia, was accorded a red carpet welcome on his arrival at the Merdeka palace, one of the presidential palaces in Indonesia, on Wednesday morning.
The meeting commenced with a tete-a-tete between the two leaders, followed by the delegation-level talks. They discussed areas of strategic cooperation, ways towards ensuring better economic ties, closer cultural relations as well as regional and global issues of mutual interest.
“Held productive discussions with President Joko Widodo. Glad that ties between India and Indonesia are gaining strong momentum. We discussed areas of strategic cooperation, ways towards ensuring better economic ties and closer cultural relations between our nations,” Modi tweeted.
In a joint press statement after the meeting, Modi said India and Indonesia have agreed to elevate their ties to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
He said that India’s Act East Policy and the vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for all in the Region) matches Widodo’s Maritime Fulcrum Vision.
“As mutual partners and neighbours, our worries are similar. It is our duty to ensure maritime security and safety. This is also for the safety of our economic interests,” he said.
“In the Indo-pacific region, we, as partners, have mutual interests in each other’s progress and well-being and that’s why we have agreed upon mutual vision and principles for the Indo-pacific region,” he said.
Modi also strongly condemned the recent terror strikes on three churches in Indonesia’s second-largest city Surabaya, and said India stands resolutely with Jakarta in the fight against terrorism.