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Indonesia enjoys stability amid the world's turmoil: SBY
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday that Indonesia should be grateful for political stability, peace, economic growth and social harmony amid all the worldâs turmoil
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resident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Friday that Indonesia should be grateful for political stability, peace, economic growth and social harmony amid all the world's turmoil.
'Alhamdulillah [praise to God], since the Reform Order started, the country's repositioning on the international stage has begun. Indonesia has became a regional power and also a respected global player,' Yudhoyono said.
He was speaking before a joint session at the House of Representatives (DPR) and the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) ahead of celebrations for Independence Day.
The speech marked Yudhoyono's last State of the Union address as he is set to end his two-term presidency in October.
Yudhoyono said that the country had and would always stand on the principle of a free and active foreign policy.
He added that the country would continue to open and expand diplomatic space with any country -- as long as national interests demanded it -- and it would do so in the spirit of 'a million friends and zero enemies'.
He said that the country had established strategic cooperation with world powers and emerging countries alike in order to strike a dynamic equilibrium that could withstand geopolitical shifts and ensure they did not breed additional conflicts.
'We are concerned with the relations between the world's powers, which have begun to deviate from stable and cooperative conditions due to new tensions,' he said.
Yudhoyono said that the conflict in Ukraine had caused numerous strategic tensions in Europe and also killed hundreds of innocent people, including 14 Indonesians in the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17.
He added that political and security issues in the Middle East had also moved in unpredictable directions.
'Indonesia continues to encourage United Nations security council members to take active roles in resolving the crisis in Syria,' he said.
Yudhoyono added that Indonesia had actively petitioned for the basic right for Palestinians to establish an independent and sovereign country.
'We remain at the forefront of the fight for the improvement of the status of Palestine to become a full member of the United Nations,' he said.
He said that the Ebola outbreak had became a threat to every country due to its deadly effect and said that the government should prudently anticipate the development of international events while remaining committed to the national interest. (put/nvn)
