In a mission to engage with the Global South, Japanese Emperor Naruhito met with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in Bogor Palace in West Java on Monday, where the emphasis was placed on having stronger ties and improving strategic economic cooperation.

Naruhito’s five-day Indonesia visit until Friday has so far seen the monarch visiting some of Jakarta’s infrastructure projects in collaboration with Japan, including Sunday’s visit to an MRT depot in Lebak Bulus and a pump station in Pluit reservoir that prevents flooding.

The arrival of Naruhito and Empress Masako in Jakarta on Saturday came after Jokowi invited the emperor during a trip to Tokyo last year. This also marks Naruhito's first overseas visit since he was enthroned in 2019.

Ahead of his trip, Naruhito told a press conference in Tokyo last week that he acknowledged the past “difficult time” the two countries had, in an apparent reference to Japan's wartime occupation of Indonesia, then a Dutch colony, in 1942-1945.

The Japanese occupation of Asia during World War II is known for its brutal practice of forced labor and sexual slavery.

Naruhito said Japan since then had “worked hard” to champion global peace and prosperity, especially with fellow Asian countries like Indonesia.

Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Jokowi on Monday, Naruhito said his visit was part of Japan’s continued diplomacy with Indonesia.

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