General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong has urged Vietnam and Indonesia to step up bilateral cooperation in different fields as the two nations share many similar characteristics and interests.

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong ​(R) and Speaker of the Indonesian Regional Representatives Council (upper house) Oesman Sapta Odang. 

At a reception for Speaker of the Indonesian Regional Representatives Council (upper house) Oesman Sapta Odang in Hanoi on January 18, the Party leader highly valued the fruitful development of the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership. 

He believed that Oesman’s visit to Vietnam to attend the 26th Annual Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF-26) will contribute to enhancing the friendship and cooperation between the legislatures as well as between Vietnam and Indonesia. 

Oesman applauded Vietnam’s strong development and expressed his delight at the development of the Vietnam-Indonesia relationship, especially after the visit to Indonesia by Party General Secretary Trong in August 2017.

Indonesia wants to strengthen friendly and cooperative ties with Vietnam in various areas, including maritime cooperation in order to maintain peace and stability, in accordance with international law, as well as interests of the two countries and the region at large, he said.

The same day, President Tran Dai Quang also hosted a reception for Oesman, during which the President expressed his belief that legislative ties between Vietnam and Indonesia, including relations between their friendship parliamentarians’ groups, will be further tightened, contributing to the enhancement of the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership. 

President Tran Dai Quang (R) and Speaker of the Indonesian Regional Representatives Council (upper house) Oesman Sapta Odang. 

The leader noted with pleasure the strong development of the traditional friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Indonesia.

The official visit to Indonesia by Party General Secretary Trong from August 22-24, 2017, has brought the bilateral relationship to a new period of development, he said. 

President Quang asked the Speaker to convey his thanks to President Joko Widodo for his attendance in the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting in central Da Nang city in November last year, as well as his invitation to the Indonesian leader to soon pay an official visit to Vietnam. 

The President spoke highly of Indonesia’s cooperation in economy, trade, investment and national defence-security as well as its coordination in handling issues relating to Vietnamese fishermen in the spirit of friendship, humanity and solidarity within ASEAN, and in line with the bilateral strategic partnership. 

President Quang suggested the two countries work out measures to soon bring the bilateral trade from more than 6.5 billion USD in 2017 to 10 million USD in the time ahead, explaining that the y still boast a lot of potential to further their trade and investment ties. 

He also urged the early signing of cooperation documents between the Vietnamese and Indonesian Ministries of Industry and Trade in economy and trade, as well as between management agencies in trade safeguard and fisheries, along with mutual recognition agreements on standards in potential areas such as oil and gas, food industry and chemicals.

Oesman affirmed Indonesia’s determination to elevate the strategic partnership to a new height by enhancing cooperation through state and parliament channels, and between ministries, agencies and localities of the two countries. 

The two leaders shared a view that member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in particular and the international community in general should step up collaboration and address common challenges. 

As ASEAN members, Vietnam and Indonesia need to continue their close ties while working with other member countries to increase the intra-bloc cooperation, solidarity and unity, and maintain a peaceful, stable and cooperative environment, they said.-VNA