JAKARTA, Feb 7 – The governments of Indonesia and Malaysia have emphasized their commitment to strengthening cooperation in several fields ranging from border negotiations to economic issues.
The commitment was emphasized by Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) while receiving a courtesy visit from Malaysian Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, on Tuesday.
“As close neighboring countries, there is no choice for us (but) to build strong cooperation,” said Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi, who also attended the meeting.
Regarding the border issue, she informed that the two countries will try to conclude both land and sea border negotiations in keeping with the agreement reached by President Widodo and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in June 2023.
She and Mohamad also discussed the importance of fulfilling the right of Indonesian migrant workers’ children in Malaysia to access education.
“So far, there have been community learning centers (CLC) in Sabah and Sarawak. We hope that CLC can also be established in the Peninsular (Malaysia) area,” Marsudi said.
The minister underscored the need to immediately implement a special bilateral mechanism between Indonesia and Malaysia to discuss the issues of migrant workers.
Meanwhile, regarding the economy, Marsudi emphasized Indonesia’s strong commitment to continue to bolster economic cooperation with Malaysia, one of its biggest trade and investment partners.
“We also discussed how to optimize the economy in border areas,” she added.
Mohamad’s visit to Indonesia was his first to the country after taking office as the Foreign Affairs Minister of Malaysia on Dec 12, 2023.
