resident Prabowo Subianto is in Egypt for a summit of eight Muslim-majority developing countries grouped under the D8 Organization for Economic Cooperation scheduled for Thursday, an event he dubbed important for Jakarta despite skepticism from analysts who question the group’s strategic bearing.
The President arrived in Cairo on Tuesday evening. He is accompanied by Foreign Minister Sugiono and Cabinet Secretary Maj. Teddy Indra Wijaya.
The D8, also known as Developing 8, is an economic grouping consisting of Indonesia, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey. It was first formed in 1997 to encourage cooperation among developing Islamic countries and create new opportunities.
While the summit is set to discuss economic cooperation and investment, the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza has been projected to cast a dark shadow over the Cairo talks, with three of its members, namely Iran, Egypt and Turkey, having been directly impacted by the conflict over the past year.
“With the current conditions, I’d say the D8 Summit is a significant event, especially since Indonesia will assume the rotating leadership of the group in January,” Prabowo told a press briefing shortly before jetting off from Jakarta.
In Cairo, Prabowo will meet his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi in his first state visit to the Mideast country. “This is the first time an Indonesian president [has visited] Egypt since 2013. Egypt is our close friend, a strategic partner for Indonesia and an important country in the Middle East,” he said.
Analysts have said that the current precarious geopolitical landscape in the Middle East is a strong indication that no significant economic opportunities or investment are likely to come from Egypt this week, with most engagements likely to be political or security-heavy in nature.
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