During a press briefing on Thursday, the Foreign Affairs Ministrys Spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir said Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi and Minister of Defense Ryamizard Ryacudu would meet Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and Defense Minister Gen Nakatani to discuss strategic bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Japan.
"There are three main clusters to be discussed, comprising of issues on the regional, global and bilateral stage," he stated.
In terms of the regional cluster, Arrmanatha explained the four ministers would discuss the political and defense outlooks in the Asian region, including issues concerning the South China Sea, Japans new military policy, and a follow up of the East Asian Summit (EAS) held in Kuala Lumpur in November 2015.
According to Arrmanatha, the agreement to push regional maritime cooperation was one of the most important outcomes of the 2015 EAS, which was initiated by Indonesia, and the South China Sea dispute was also included.
"The outcome also covers the agreement to establish peace and stability in the region, in which South China Sea was also included," he noted.
With regards to the global cluster, as both Indonesia and Japan are an active contributor to the United Nations Peace Keeping Forces, they will discuss the possibilities of Japan increasing its military participation in international activities after their new military policy had been ratified.
"The two countries will also discuss current global issues, such as terrorism, radicalism and conflicts in the Middle East," added Arrmanatha.
On the bilateral cluster, Arrmanatha said the four ministers would discuss how to boost the economy and defense cooperation.
"The four ministers will discuss how they can increase investment and trade, as well as touch upon issues of our defense composure, including cooperation on joint military training, strategic industrys development and transfer of technology," he noted.
After attending the two-plus-two meeting in Tokyo, Minister Marsudi is scheduled to visit South Korea for Indonesia-South Koreas Joint Ministerial Committee event.
(T.A060/INE)
EDITED BY INE/A014.
Reporter: Azi Fitriyanti
Editor: Suryanto
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