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Singaporean foreign minister meets Jokowi, Ma’ruf during Jakarta trip
Vice president elect Ma’ruf Amin met with Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in Jakarta on Thursday to talk about combating extremism and radicalization during the latter’s short trip to Jakarta.
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Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan (left) invited vice president-elect Ma'ruf Amin (right) to a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday. They talked about combating extremism and radicalism. (Singaporean Embassy in Indonesia/Singaporean Embassy in Indonesia)
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ice president-elect Ma’ruf Amin was invited to meet with Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in Jakarta on Thursday during the latter’s three-day visit to the Indonesian capital.
Ma’ruf and Balakrishnan “had a good discussion on the multifaceted and deep historical ties between Singapore and Indonesia, underpinned by close friendships at all levels”, the Singaporean Embassy in Jakarta said in a post on Facebook.
“Minister Balakrishnan and Bapak Ma’ruf reaffirmed the importance of combating extremism and radicalization, and strengthening cohesion within our societies,” the embassy said on the social media platform.
Later that day, Balakrishnan met with Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan for talks in which they welcomed “the positive momentum in bilateral relations”.
“[We] looked forward to doing more collaborative projects together for our mutual benefit in the coming years,” the embassy said in its post. Luhut is a former Indonesian ambassador to Singapore.
Minister Balakrishnan has been in Jakarta since Tuesday and returned to Singapore Thursday afternoon.
During his trip, the minister also held meetings with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, as well as with local media.
With Jokowi, Balakrishnan discussed expanding cooperation on infrastructure, investments and human capital development.
Singapore remains Indonesia’s largest foreign investor, with US$9.2 billion in realized investments last year, according to data from the Investment Coordinating Board.
In addition, they also talked about preparations for an upcoming leaders’ retreat, which is still in discussions.
Balakrishnan also visited former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the latter’s residence in Cikeas, West Java, to express his condolences over the recent death of his wife, former first lady Ani Yudhoyono, who died of cancer after receiving four months of intensive medical treatment in Singapore.
