Widodo kicks off Asean introduction with PH visit
Indonesian president Joko Widodo. AFP
MANILA, Philippines – Indonesia’s new president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is set to visit the Philippines as part of introductory visits in the Southeast Asian Region, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday.
DFA secretary Albert del Rosario personally gave his congratulations to Widodo during his inauguration as Indonesia’s 7th president and expressed the Philippines looks forward to receiving him in Manila when he conducts his introductory visits in the region.
“It is customary for a newly-elected President of a Southeast Asian nation such as Indonesia to conduct initial international visits with member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), DFA said in a statement.
No specific date was set for the visit.
Widodo asked Del Rosario to “give my best to President Benigno Aquino III and I look forward to meeting him.”
Indonesia is the largest nation in the Asean region with a population of almost 250 million people and a GDP of almost $1.3 trillion.
Former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who visited the Philippines during the World Economic Forum, completed his second term as president on October 19. Indonesian presidents are allowed two terms of five years each.
Del Rosario also conveyed to Widodo that Aquino was looking forward to closely working with the new Indonesian administration on cooperative endeavors that would further strengthen and deepen the abiding friendship between the Philippines and Indonesia.
The Philippines and Indonesia have at least 35 bilateral agreements covering a wide range of bilateral cooperation in areas such as defense and security, consular matters, trade and investments, maritime concerns, transportation and communications, energy, and tourism.
Two-way trade between the two countries amounted to $3.5 billion in 2013, the DFA said.
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