SEPANG: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said that Indonesia has pledged to assist and cooperate with Malaysia in its ASEAN Chairmanship this year.
Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, said this was conveyed by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto during their closed-door meeting at a luncheon held in the Kuala Lumpur today.
“Prabowo’s official visit is scheduled for Jan 27, but he felt the need to come earlier because we are longtime friends, and we need to have a heart-to-heart discussion of issues of mutual interest.
“He also wants to collaborate and assist me in the ASEAN Chairmanship,” Anwar told a press conference after sending off Prabowo at the Bunga Raya Complex of the KL International Airport after the latter concluded the one-day working visit to Malaysia, today.
Malaysia officially assumed the ASEAN Chairmanship starting this month, with the theme of ‘Inclusivity and Sustainability’.
Malaysia has also held the ASEAN Chairmanship in 1977, 1997, 2005, and 2015.
Anwar said that during the lunch meeting, they also discussed bilateral relations, particularly to enhance trade relations, investment, border cooperation, and several emerging issues.
“Certainly, this meeting was more of an informal discussion. Both of us feel that more needs to be done to improve trade relations, investment, border cooperation, and to resolve some of the outstanding issues,” he said.
Meanwhile, Wisma Putra in a statement said that Prabowo’s visit reflects the special relationship between Malaysia and Indonesia, supported by strong cooperation in various fields including economy, socio-culture, defence, and security.
In 2023, Indonesia was Malaysia’s seventh-largest trading partner globally and the third-largest among ASEAN member countries, with a total trade value of RM111.21 billion (US$24.39 billion).
From January to October 2024, bilateral trade reached RM95.50 billion (US$20.75 billion), compared to RM94.37 billion (US$20.69 billion) during the same period in 2023.
Meanwhile, in a Facebook post, Anwar said that during the lunch meeting, he and Prabowo also discussed the issues concerning the recruitment of Indonesian workers, coordination of fishermen in disputed areas of the Strait of Melaka, socio-culture, defence, and security.
He said that the brief yet meaningful meeting was fully utilised to further strengthen the close relationship that has existed between the two nations.
“Insya-Allah, I believe, the synergy from this meeting will be used to explore new opportunities for the benefit of a better future for both countries,” said Anwar.
