Indonesia Reaffirms Commitment To Boost Defence Ties With Malaysia

JAKARTA, Sept 7 (Bernama) -- Indonesia has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthen its defence cooperation with Malaysia following a key meeting between its Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto and His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia, in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

In a statement, the Indonesia’s Defence Ministry said Prabowo’s focus is on the robust and enduring relations between the two countries and his optimism for further strengthening their partnership.

“I value the strong relations between our two countries and will continue to work on enhancing our cooperation, particularly in defence.

“I appreciate Your Majesty’s positive expectations and hope our partnership will continue to grow for our mutual benefit,” Prabowo said.

The hour-long talks also covered the Malaysia-Indonesia General Border Committee (GBC), with Indonesia anticipating the upcoming 44th GBC meeting will strengthen commitments and enhance safety, security and prosperity in the region.

Prabowo, who has a long-standing friendship with His Majesty dating back over 40 years to their joint military training at Fort Bragg in the United States, praised Malaysia for its warm hospitality and underscored the importance of the ongoing strategic collaboration.

Scheduled to succeed Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Oct 20, Prabowo’s visit to Malaysia is part of  a series of official trips to Brunei, Laos and Cambodia.

He has also made an unofficial visit to Thailand to meet with former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his daughter, Paetongtarn, who is the kingdom’s new premier.

-- BERNAMA