Nowhere in the world are there three neighbours more different than the extraordinary triangle of Australia, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.
Trade
Prioritising connectivity and reframing their economic ties as regional rather than bilateral could help foster a closer business relationship.
Through our work for the AIC, we helped to link hundreds of researchers, government departments, business partners and others in collaborative partnerships.
In 2018, less than 1 percent of Australia’s foreign investment went to Indonesia. Two-way trade with Indonesia has stagnated at around 2 percent for the entire decade.
[IA-CEPA is] good news for farmers everywhere – Indonesia is the world’s fourth largest country by population and is expected to be a trillion-dollar economy by 2050.
Indonesian tourists pay a $140 visa application fee and complete a 17 page questionnaire… In comparison, Australians visiting Indonesia can receive free 30 day visa on arrival.
Indonesia President Joko Widodo’s declaration on the floor of the House of Representatives on Monday that “Australia is Indonesia’s closest friend” has given us pause for thought.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi highlighted the importance of developing what she called “strategic trust” in Australia-Indonesia relations, ahead Jokowi’s visit to Canberra.
It was revealing that both Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Indonesian President Joko Widodo cited the same quote from former PM Robert Menzies during Jokowi’s address to the Australian Parliament.
President Joko Widodo has expressed his hopes that the ratification of the IA-CEPA will also have a positive impact on the peoples of both countries in addition to strengthening bilateral ties.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has taken a strategic step to formally expand economic ties with Australia, our closest major neighbor.
Not only did President Jokowi address Australia’s parliament on Monday, he also launched a plan of actions for IA-CEPA, which finally has been ratified by Indonesia’s parliament last week.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison and President Widodo held a Joint Ministerial Meeting with other Ministers in Canberra.
It’s a testament to the power of personal diplomacy between leaders that the IA-CEPA came to figure so highly in Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s foreign policy priorities.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo told Australia’s parliament that he wanted to work with the traditional Pacific power to expand influence in the region.
Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo is to the second Indonesian leader to address a joint sitting of the Australian Parliament.
