Indonesian media spotlight President Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s visit

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc (L) and President Joko Widodo. (Photo: VNA)

The website of the Indonesia Presidential Palace said that during a bilateral meeting on December 22, President Joko Widodo and his Vietnamese counterpart discussed a range of measures to enhance strategic partnership bilaterally and regionally.

On the occasion, Widodo hailed the Vietnamese Government for its trust on Indonesian companies. He wished that several problems faced by Indonesian investors would be dealt with to facilitate new projects in the near future.

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, for his part, agreed with the host that in order to overcome challenges, the two nations need to strengthen political trust and economic cooperation.

Meanwhile, the official website of the Indonesian President’s Secretariat said that at a meeting following the State-level welcome ceremony, Widodo underlined Indonesia’s commitment to continue reinforcing bilateral strategic partnership and called on Vietnam to strengthen ASEAN.

Indonesian news agency Antara, for its part, said during the joint press conference with President Phuc on December 22, Widodo announced that the two nations had completed negotiations on delimitation of the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) after 12 years of talks.

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc also affirmed that Vietnam fully supports the theme of Indonesia's 2023 ASEAN Chairmanship Year "ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth", and emphasised that the meeting between the two leaders is a driving force for Vietnam and Indonesia to cooperate for the benefit of their people.

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc (fifth from left) with ASEAN Secretary-General Lim Jock Hoi (fifth from right) and other delegates. (Photo: VNA)

According to the CNN Indonesia television, the Vietnamese leader said the two countries have agreed to define the boundary of the EEZ in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). In addition to the EEZ, the two countries also signed three memoranda of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in energy and mineral resources, fighting terrorism, and combating drug trafficking.

Apart from the three MoU, Widodo also hoped that a bilateral agreement on fisheries and elimination of illegal, unreported and undocumented fishing will be completed, said the newswire Okezone

The same day, the Solo Pos newspaper said the Indonesian President expects to launch a new direct flight between Da Nang and Denpasar, and between Ho Chi Minh City and Jakarta. He also proposed resuming direct flights between the two countries’ economic and tourism hubs./.