D

espite being caught up in a war at home, Sri Lanka has shown a strong commitment in recent years to build an enhanced and deepened partnership with Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy, Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia Maj. Gen. (ret) Nanda Mallawaarachchi said.

"We have had excellent relations with Indonesia since our independence. Besides enhancing economic ties, we would like to have a strong relationship in defense, political and cultural fields," Ambassador Mallawaarachchi told The Jakarta Post in an interview at his office Monday.

Sri Lanka gained its independence on Feb. 4, 1948, from Britain.

Both Sri Lanka and Indonesia, Mallawaarachchi said, were coorganizers of the Bandung Conference in 1955 and founders of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and shared the common aspirations and hopes of NAM.

In recent times, Sri Lankan leaders have shown a greater interest in Indonesia. Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama attended the launch of the Bali Democracy Forum in De-cember 2008 and met with President Susilo Bambang Yudho-yono.

"Our participation in the Bali forum is a clear sign that our friendship is growing," Mallawaarachchi, a soft-spoken veteran general, said.

During his visit, Bogollagama extended an invitation from Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse to President Yudhoyono to visit Sri Lanka.

Both countries had earlier signed an agreement in New York in 2008 to host the Joint Commission Meeting in Colombo in the first half of this year to strengthen cooperation be-tween the two countries, Mallawaarachchi said.

"It will be our first-ever joint-commission meeting. Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda will attend this meeting in Colombo. This meeting will really boost our relations fur-ther," he said.

In January 2008, Sri Lanka's Secretary of Defense Gotabaya Rajapakse, who is leading the ongoing onslaught at home against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, visited Indonesia to enhance military ties.

"That visit further cemented our bilateral defense cooperation," Mallawaarachchi said.

During his visit, Rajapakse, who is also the brother of President Mahinde Rajapakse and de-facto defense minister, met with several Indonesian ministers and military chiefs.

"We are very happy about our growing defense ties with Indonesia. The Indonesian Military's three services have agreed to provide training to our officers at their defense institu-tions. Both countries are committed to combat terrorism," Mallawaarachchi said.

"Lanka and Indonesia will soon sign an agreement on combating terrorism."

On the economic front, both countries have been trying to boost bilateral trade.

"In the last five years, our trade has doubled. Several Sri Lankan business delegations visited Indonesia to look for business opportunities," Mallawaarachchi said.

Bilateral trade surged to US$456.59 million in 2007, a huge jump from $187.75 million in 2003. It reached $300 million in the first nine months of 2008, an 8.5 percent decrease from $327.20 million over the same period in 2007.

"The trade balance is heavily in favor of Indonesia. We buy palm oil, furniture and other goods from Indonesia. Our exports to Indonesia are very small. But interestingly, we have been receiving a lot of inquiries about investing in Sri Lanka from Indonesian businesspeople" Mallawaarachchi said.

The ambassador said Sri Lanka's national carrier Sri Lankan Airlines would soon resume flights to Indonesia.

"There will be a greater country-to-country connectivity; that's a great achievement," he said.

Sri Lankan Airlines, which won the Sri Lanka's Airline of the Year award Monday, used to fly to Jakarta under the name of Air Lanka from Colombo in the 1990s.

Also this year, the Sri Lankan government has been preparing to establish a honorary consulate in Bali.

Mallawaarachchi said he had another plan to promote his country abroad.

"We are planning to invite a group of foreign ambassadors, who are based in Jakarta, to Sri Lanka so that they can see for themselves about our economic potential," he said.