Jakarta, The Indonesia Post – Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is scheduled to visit China, Japan and South Korea on July 26-July 28 2022.
“The three countries are Indonesia’s strategic partners in the economic field, as well as strategic partners for ASEAN when we talk about regional issues,” said Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi when delivering a press statement online, Thursday.
Retno explained that the focus of President Jokowi’s visit to the three East Asian countries was to increase economic cooperation, particularly trade and investment.
President Jokowi will arrive in Beijing on July 26, 2022, where he is scheduled to meet Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and President Xi Jinping.
“President Jokowi was one of the first leaders President Xi Jinping received during the pandemic, outside of the Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this year,” said Retno.
China is listed as Indonesia’s largest trading partner with a bilateral trade value of US$110 billion (around Rp. 1,650 trillion) in 2021, while China’s investment in Indonesia is recorded at US$3.2 billion (around Rp. 48 trillion).
After a day in Beijing, Jokowi continues his trip to Tokyo where he will meet with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida as well as Japanese businesses.
“Japan is an important traditional economic partner for Indonesia,” said Retno.
Indonesia-Japan bilateral trade last year reached 32 billion US dollars (around Rp. 480 trillion) and the investment value was recorded at 2.26 billion US dollars (around Rp. 33.9 trillion).
After Beijing and Tokyo, President Jokowi’s last destination in his short visit is Seoul on July 28, 2022.
In the South Korean capital, Jokowi is scheduled to hold a meeting with President Yoon Suk Yeol.
Retno explained that South Korea is also an important partner in the economic field with a bilateral trade value of 18.41 billion US dollars (approximately Rp276.1 trillion).
South Korean investment in Indonesia continues to grow rapidly, and last year it reached 1.64 billion US dollars (around Rp. 24.6 trillion).
“In addition to discussing strengthening bilateral cooperation, the President (Jokowi) and the leaders of the three countries in each bilateral meeting will also discuss the latest developments on several regional and international issues,” said Retno. (mhn/bbs)
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