Indonesian President Joko Widodo due to begin Vietnam visit today
VOV.VN - Indonesian President Joko Widodo is scheduled to begin a three-day working visit to Vietnam on January 11 at the invitation of Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong.
This is Widodo’s second state visit to Vietnam after the first in 2018.
The two countries have maintained the positive development of bilateral relations through frequent reciprocal visits. Most recently, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Indonesian President Widodo on the sidelines of the 43rd ASEAN Summit in Jakarta last September.
In Southeast Asia, Indonesia is currently Vietnam’s third largest trading partner, while Vietnam is Indonesia’s fourth largest trading partner.
Two-way trade turnover between the two countries has grown rapidly over the years, from just US$4.6 billion to US$14.2 billion in 2022, surpassing the US$10 billion target set for 2023.
Bilateral trade fetched US$12.63 billion between January – November 2023, and was estimated to hit US$15 billion by the year’s end.
Vietnam is a reputable and quality supplier of many products to the Indonesian market, such as rice, coffee, rubber, seafood, textiles, footwear, mobile phones and components, iron and steel, construction materials, and plastic products.
Many of Indonesia’s strong products such as coal, auto parts, palm oil, plastic raw materials, animal feed and raw materials, chemicals, and metals are also imported by Vietnamese businesses to support production.
The two countries have signed cooperation documents in the fields of trade-economy-investment, science-technology, maritime transport, civil aviation transport, forestry, education, and crime prevention.
The two countries have resumed post-pandemic direct flight air routes linking major Vietnamese visit such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Indonesia’s Jakarta and Bali. They are considering opening flights from Vietnam’s Da Nang to several Indonesian localities.
In an interview granted to Vietnamese media agencies ahead of Widodo’s departure, Indonesian Ambassador to Vietnam Denny Abdi noted both Indonesia and Vietnam have great potential for stronger cooperation, and it’s time for the two sides to lift their strategic ties established in June 2013 to new heights.
