Jakarta (Antara Bali) - Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott telephoned Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday afternoon to express his regret for being unable to attend the Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Open Government Partnership in Bali.
The Australian premier telephoned Yudhoyono when the latter was in the world-renowned tourist island to open the conference at around 02.00 p. m. local time on Tuesday, Teuku Faizasyah, President Yudhoyonos special aide for international relations, said in a press release on Tuesday.
In the telephonic talk, Tony Abbott expressed his regret for being unable to meet President Yudhoyonos invitation to the conference, Faizasyah said.
"President Yudhoyono said he understood the reason for Prime Minister Abbotts absence in the Bali meeting due to budget deliberation in parliament," he said.
Faizasyah said during the talk, the two leaders also warmly welcomed the progress achieved by the two countries foreign ministers in the discussion of the code of conduct.
The two leaders expressed hope that the code of conduct can be signed soon so that bilateral relations between the two neighboring countries will recover and enter a new phase, he said.
"President Yudhoyono expressed hope that the code of conduct will be signed in August 2014 at the latest," he said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abbott expected to visit Indonesia and meet President Yudhoyono in June.(WDY)
