Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and visiting President Joko Widodo noted good relations between Singapore and Indonesia on Tuesday (Oct 8) during their fourth leaders’ meeting, expressing hope that ties will strengthen over the following five years.
“We each reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the mutually useful relationship between our two countries,” Widodo said at a press conference, as quoted by Times of the Strait.
He and Lee also noted with satisfaction that economic ties between the 2 countries have continued to expand over time, with cooperation in trade, investment and tourism going from strength to strength.
Singapore is consistently on the forefront of investors in Indonesia, and since 2014 it has been the most important foreign investor in Indonesia, with investments made in 2018 reaching USD 9.2 billion (S$12.7 billion). Both countries also consistently count tourist arrivals amongst their largest sources of capital.
Several pacts were also signed between the 2 countries, which the leaders witnessed.
The first was the Indonesia-Singapore Agreement on Electronic Data Interchange for Facilitation and Secure Trade, which is able to connect the 2 countries’ comprehensive e-Customs services, commonly often known as National Single Window. It goals to create a seamless, paperless and secure business environment for bilateral trade.
The second was a memorandum of understanding on archival cooperation between the National Archives of Singapore, which falls under the National Library Board, and the National Archives of Indonesia. It goals to deepen knowledge in regards to the history, culture and heritage of each side.
The third was the renewal of the $10 billion contract currency pactwhich is able to help support monetary and financial stability within the region.
Both countries will proceed to have access to their currency and US dollars to settle transactions or defend their currencies in times of monetary stress.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo also met with President Halimah Yacob on Wednesday (October 9), reaffirming the “long-standing and excellent relations” between the 2 countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a press statement carried by Asia News Channel.
The two presidents met on the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), where the meeting was chaired by Ms Halimah as patron of the university. As reported by Good News Southeast Asia, Mr. Widodo was present at his youngest son’s graduation ceremony at SUSS.
