RI, Thai armed forces to enhance cooperation

JAKARTA: Representatives of the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the Thai armed forced agreed in Jakarta on Wednesday to increase military cooperation, particularly in protecting the Straits of Malacca with Malaysia and Singapore.

"We discussed our existing relationship and agreed it should be strengthened," TNI commander Gen. Djoko Santoso said after joining Thai armed forces chief Gen. Songkitti Jag-gabatara in a meeting with Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono.

Djoko said Thailand's role in the joint patrol was strategic given its geographic position in the northern most area of Malacca, one of the world's most important shipping lanes. - JP