China pledges to foster new cooperation highlights with Indonesia

Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (L) shakes hands with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi during their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on July 12, 2023. [Xinhua/Xu Qin]

JAKARTA -- China is ready to foster new cooperation highlights and promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation with Indonesia, said Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Wang Yi on Wednesday.

The senior Chinese diplomat made the remarks while meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, saying that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Wang noted that bilateral relations have shown broad prospects for development. He said China is ready to work with Indonesia to make preparations for the next stage of high-level exchanges.

He said China stands ready to promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation together with Indonesia and foster more new cooperation highlights in green development, digital economy, food security, poverty reduction and poverty alleviation.

Wang said the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR) is a major landmark project under the Belt and Road Initiative, and carries the aspirations of the Indonesian people for a better life. It is also a successful story of Asian countries joining hands to achieve modernization.

He believes that the HSR will be completed and opened to traffic on schedule with the joint efforts of both sides and play its due role in Indonesia's economic and social development.

Wang said this year also marks the 20th anniversary of China's accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, noting that China will continue to support the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-centered and effective regional cooperation architecture, and support ASEAN in playing a bigger role in international and regional affairs.

Wang also believes that Indonesia, as the ASEAN chair, will inject new vitality into the development of China-ASEAN relations. Together, China and ASEAN will inject more stability and certainty into a turbulent and intertwined world, he said.

Marsudi said China is an important strategic cooperation partner of Indonesia, adding that her country attaches great importance to relations with China and has high expectations for high-level exchanges between the two sides in the future.

She thanked China for supporting Indonesia's hosting of multilateral events and the importance China attaches to ASEAN, adding that Indonesia will play its role as the chair to promote the deepening of ASEAN-China cooperation.

Wang will attend the ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers' Meeting, the ASEAN Plus Three Foreign Ministers' Meeting, the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers' Meeting and the ASEAN Regional Forum Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia from Thursday to Friday.