Jakarta. Vice President (Vice President) Jusuf Kalla received the official visit of the Indian Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari at the Vice President’s Palace in Merdeka Selatan Street, Jakarta, today. Mr Ansari and entourage arrived at the palace at 10 in the morning welcome by Mr Kalla and the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi.
This visit began with tete-a-tete meeting, followed by a bilateral meeting and the signing of memorandum of understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on new and renewable energy, cultural exchange, and transfer of knowledge and technology.
In a joint press conference held after the MoU, Mr Kalla said that the meeting is intended to improve the bilateral relations between Indonesia and India. “We have been in a good relationship with India for more than 60 years, either in social, civilization, culture, or politics,” he said.
Mr Kalla further insisted on trade relationship. “We need to increase the trade value to be far more than 20 billion dollars per year as we have now,” said the Indonesian Vice President.
Meanwhile, the Indian Vice President extended his gratitude to the Indonesian Vice President for inviting him to the country. “My visit is to highlight the importance of extending and intensifying partnership between the two countries,” Mr Ansari said.
Vice President Ansari also stated that the meeting has given the opportunity to revitalize a dialog between India and Indonesia as both countries are now rapidly growing, particularly in the economic sector. Mr Ansari further said that the two countries share similar global and regional issues, such as climate change, maritime security, and South China Sea borders.
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