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View all search resultsSingapore dismisses claims of taking advantage of Indonesia’s weakening economy
Singaporean ministers conveyed their confidence in Indonesia's economy and pledged to root for its long-term performance amid backlash from reports of investors pulling out of its neighbor.
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A car carrying Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong arrives at the Merdeka Palace in Central Jakarta on July 6 ahead of the annual leaders retreat between the prime minister and President Prabowo Subianto, in which both leaders discuss bilateral ties between the two countries. (Antara/Bayu Pratama S.)
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ingapore has asserted its commitment to continue working closely with Indonesia to maintain strong ties and mutual stability, while dismissing widespread sentiment accusing the city-state of profiting from the economic slowdown facing its neighbor.
The two countries were dragged into online feuds in June, following an article published by Bloomberg containing the phrase “Sell Indonesia” in its title.
It referred to reports of foreign investors pulling billions of dollars out of the country because of policy uncertainty and rupiah depreciation under President Prabowo Subianto’s administration. The rupiah dropped to multiple record lows in June, sliding to more than Rp 18,000 per United States dollar, making it Asia’s worst performing currency.
The article was later republished by Singaporean news outlet The Straits Times, prompting Indonesian social media users to accuse the city-state of gaining benefits from negative sentiments against Indonesia’s economic performance.
They also raised a so-called counter movement called “Sell Singapore”, which included a call to boycott Singaporean products such as e-commerce platform Shopee.
In a press briefing with a group of Indonesian journalists on July 16, Singaporean Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim refused to attribute the online jabs targeting his country as the true sentiments reflecting the bilateral ties between the two countries.
“Our progress is to see Indonesia progress, to grow and to see, under the leadership of President Prabowo, [and] to make sure that he has the conditions for Indonesia to grow and for ASEAN to grow with it,” Rahim said.
