BOGOR, Indonesia (AP) 鈥 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met his Indonesian counterpart Prabowo Subianto on Wednesday for talks aimed at strengthening economic and defense ties between the two Muslim-majority nations.
Erdogan鈥檚 state visit to Indonesia, the world鈥檚 most populous Muslim-majority country and Southeast Asia鈥檚 largest economy, was his second stop in a four-day visit that also includes and Pakistan.
Turkey and Indonesia held their first High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council summit after agreeing to create the forum at the G20 Summit in Bali in 2022.
The discussions focused on current regional and global issues, particularly the war in Gaza, the two leaders said in a joint news conference after the meeting.
Subianto said the meeting was 鈥渋ntensive and productive鈥 and the two countries share a commitment to strengthen their partnership. 鈥淧resident Erdogan鈥檚 visit is a new chapter in our strategic partnership," he added.
Indonesia has long been a strong supporter of the Palestinians and Subianto said the two countries share the same view about the importance of a cease-fire and of resolving the Palestinian problem through a two-state solution.
Erdogan said he appreciated Indonesia鈥檚 firm stance on the Palestinian issue and repeated a call for Israel to pay for the reconstruction of Gaza..
He estimated the total damage caused by Israel鈥檚 15-month-long attacks is approaching $100 billion, adding that 鈥渢he principle in law is that damages should be collected from the person responsible.鈥
Erdogan and his wife, First Lady Emine Erdogan, arrived in Jakarta late Tuesday and was welcomed by Subianto at Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport in a light rain. Erdogan rode with in a motorcade to his hotel.
Indonesia and Turkey have built an increasingly close relationship in recent years, and the two leaders previously met in Ankara last July when Subianto was still president-elect and defense minister. Subianto pledged to 鈥渆levate defense cooperation and other strategic fields for mutual benefit.鈥
The two countries signed a defense cooperation agreement in 2010, under which Indonesia鈥檚 state-run arms producer Pindad and Turkey鈥檚 FNSS jointly developed a new model of medium tank. In 2023, the two countries inked a plan of action for joint military exercises and defense industry cooperation.
In addition to Indonesia, Turkey has HLSCC cooperation forums with 21 other countries, including Pakistan.
The two leaders on Wednesday also witnessed the signing of a dozen agreements between Turkey and Indonesia, including on trade, investment, education, energy, agriculture, health and religious services. The two leaders also signed deal on the joint development of a Baykar combat-drone factory in Indonesia, and Erdogan pledged his country would invest in the development of Indonesia鈥檚 new capital on Borneo island.
鈥淲e are trying to increase our trade by $10 billion per year with the same balance,鈥 Erdogan said.
Erdogan will head on to Pakistan on Wednesday, where he and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will address the Pakistan-Turkey Business and Investment Forum and attend another HSLCC meeting.
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Karmini reported from Jakarta, Indonesia. Associated Press writer Edna Tarigan contributed to this report.
