Indonesia and Kazakhstan To Promote Economic Cooperation

Jakarta (Antara Bali) - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi  and Kazakhstan counterpart Erlan A. Idrissov met in New York on Thursday to discuss way of promoting bilateral economic cooperation.

The two foreign affairs ministers met on the sidelines of the U.N. general assembly meeting , the foreign ministry said in a statement here on Thursday.

The two ministers also discussed  the second joint economics ministerial meeting  and other bilateral issues such as a planned visit to Indonesia  by Kazakhstan's president to Indonesia in return of the visit to that country last year by former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Retno said Indonesia welcomes the second economics ministerial meeting between the two countries expected to boost the two countries' economic growth.

In  2014, the bilateral trade was valued at US$23.60  million and the two countries hope to boost the trade value to US$100 million in 2017 .

That year 4,700 tourists from  Kazakhstan visited Indonesia .

The Indonesian and Kazakhstan government are discussing a note of understanding  on cooperation in the oil and gas sector  and follow up of note of understanding  in political cooperation signed in 2014.

The foreign minister of Kazakhstan hoped that Indonesia played an active role in  in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and ratify the statute of OIC on food security.

Erlan said Kazakhstan hoped that IC major countries like Indonesia and Saudi Arabia could encourage other member countries to ratify the statute .

Currently there are only two or three countries having ratified the statute. (WDY)