Jakarta: Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida discussed several topics, including bilateral cooperation and the Israeli aggression in Palestine’s Gaza Strip, during a meeting in Tokyo, Japan, on Saturday. According to a statement received from the President’s secretariat in Jakarta, the two leaders discussed collaboration in the development of the Jakarta mass rapid transit (MRT) train system.
The Indonesian head of state expressed his appreciation to Japan for its commitment to developing the east-west line of the MRT. He further said he hoped that the construction of the north-south line of the MRT would go as per plan. “I hope that the development of Phase 2A and Phase 2B of the north-south line will be completed on time,” he stated. During the meeting, Widodo and Kishida also touched upon energy transition. As a co-initiator of the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC), Indonesia considers it important to forge cooperation in decarbonization through inclusive financing and transfer of low-carbon technology, Widodo said.
He then added that the AZEC needs to ensure the follow-up of the 12 memorandums of understanding signed some time ago at a ministerial meeting. “We would also like to ask for support for accelerating the completion of three priority projects, namely a geothermal power plant in Muara Laboh (West Sumatra), a ‘waste to energy’ project in Legok Nangka (West Java), and peatland management in Central Kalimantan,” he stated. The two leaders also touched upon bilateral cooperation in the critical mineral and maritime sectors.
President Widodo expressed the hope that Japan would provide support to Indonesia to help it advance its mineral industry downstreaming and emerge as an important player in the global supply chain of electric vehicle batteries. “I am expecting even greater support for the economic development of Indonesia’s outermost islands, including by supporting our fishery industry,” he added. The President also used the meeting to discuss the current situation in Palestine.
He reiterated Indonesia’s commitment to push for a lasting ceasefire, plan continuous humanitarian aid, and encourage the immediate commencement of a peace process for bringing an end to the prolonged conflict. “To that end, we are highly expecting support from Japan,” Widodo said. Following their bilateral meeting, Widodo and Kishida received proposal documents produced during the ASEAN-Japan Young Business Leaders’ Summit and the ASEAN-Japan Gen-Z Business Leaders’ Summit.
They also witnessed the exchange of documents on the grant of a patrol ship worth US$63.3 million from the Japanese government to the Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (Bakamla). Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi and her Japanese counterpart Yoko Kamikawa carried out the document exchange. Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto; Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung; and Indonesian Ambassador to Japan, Heri Akhmadi, accompanied President Widodo to the bilateral meeting.
