Sochi (Antara Bali) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and his Russian
counterpart Vladimir Putin witnessed the signing of five memoranda of
understanding (MoUs) on bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and
Russia, here, Wednesday evening.
The MoUs include cooperation in defense, illegal fishing eradication, cultural exchange, and archival cooperation.
From the Indonesian side, the MoUs were signed by Foreign Affairs
Minister Retno Marsudi, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi
Pudjiastuti, and Head of the National Archive Agency Mustari Irawan.
Prior to the signing of the MoUs, Jokowi and Putin held a bilateral
meeting to discuss economic issues and efforts to strengthen political
and defense cooperation.
At a joint press conference, Jokowi stated that the two countries had
also agreed to boost Russian investment in Indonesia, particularly in
the fields of maritime, infrastructure, oil and gas, energy, and
electricity.
The Indonesian head of state also emphasized the importance of
including the transfer of technology and weapon purchase as part of the
defense cooperation.
The two leaders also discussed cooperation in military exercise, education, and joint production.
Indonesia has urged Russia to ease tariff and non-tariff barriers for Indonesian palm oil exports to the country.
President Putin informed the press that Russia was keen on expanding cooperation in the energy field with Indonesia.
"There is good potential for expanding energy cooperation. Our
companies --- Zarubezhneft and Rosneft --- have specific, serious
large-scale projects, including the construction of a modern oil
refinery on Java Island, with a possible investment of US$13 billion,"
Putin revealed.
"Plans also include the construction of a 1.8-gigawatt thermal power
station, with contribution from our company InterRAO and an investment
of $2.8 billion. Rosatom is working on a project to build an
experimental low-power reactor," he added.
Putin also noted that Russia was ready to provide all necessary
assistance to its Indonesian partners for implementing infrastructure
projects.
"Significant in this context is a joint project that was launched
last year: a 190-kilometer-long railway line in Kalimantan, to be built
by our company Russian Railways in conjunction with its partners. The
project will create over 2.5 thousand jobs," Putin noted.
The railway line will connect the resource-rich part of the island
to a new port and industrial and technological cluster where
manufacturing and processing enterprises will be located, also with a
share of Russian capital, he explained.
Cooperation plans also include the development of coal fields, the
production of ferronickel, manganese dioxide, alumina, and more.
"Our companies are ready to provide Indonesia with high-speed
hydrofoil vessels, catamarans, and floating piers and to supply modern
equipment for the satellite monitoring of vessels. We have agreed to
continue our collaboration in civil aviation," the Russian president
remarked.
Jokowi is in Sochi to attend the ASEAN-Russia Summit on May 19-20.(WDY)
Jokowi, Putin Witness Signing of Five Indonesian-Russian MoUs
Kamis, 19 Mei 2016 16:28 WIB