"I can say for sure that the IORA Concord was an initiative by Indonesia, and it is a form of the countrys leadership, which has been approved and supported by all IORA member countries," Head of IORAs Indonesian Delegates at the high officials meeting Desra Percaya stated during a press conference in Jakarta, Sunday.
The Jakarta Concord will be proposed during the second day of the high officials meeting before then being officiated at the state leader-level meeting on the summits third day.
The document will be titled "Indian Ocean Rims Association: Promoting Regional Cooperation for Peaceful, Stable and Prosperous Indian Ocean."
The meeting between high officials held today includes a discussion around the outcome document named "The Terrorism and Extremism Eradication and Prevention Declaration."
The officials will also finalize the negotiation around IORA member countries action plans for the next four years, Desra, who is also director general of Asia-Pacific and Africa from the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, remarked.
Meanwhile, IORAs Secretary General K.V. Bhagirath expressed hope that the suggested proposal and projects would be immediately implemented after they have been approved at the state leader-level meeting during the summit.
"Indonesia is playing its role as the leader country and has taken measures that will further strengthen regional cooperation in the Indian Ocean," Bhagirath noted.
The 2017 IORA Summit is themed "Strengthening Maritime Cooperation for Peaceful, Stable and Prosperous Indian Ocean."
The association is currently home to 21 member countries: South Africa, Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, and Yemen.
IORA also has seven countries as its dialogue partners: the US, the Great Britain, Japan, Germany, Egypt, France, and China. There are also two observer organizations on its sidelines: the Indian Ocean Tourism Organization and Indian Ocean Research Group.
The IORA meeting began on Mar 5, with the high-level officials meeting, followed by the ministerial-level meeting on Mar 6.
The 16 VVIPs who have confirmed their attendance comprise five presidents, four vice presidents, four prime ministers, and three vice prime ministers, Director General for Asia-Pacific and African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Desra Percaya had stated earlier.
The summit will bring together leaders of 21 IORA member states and its seven dialogue partners.
Along with the above official meetings, IORA will also engage the private sector through a "Business Summit" to be held on March 6, 2017, with the aim of deepening business cooperation in the region.
The summit is expected to result in several outcome documents, including the IORA Concord, the IORA Action Plan, and the IORA Declaration on Countering Violent Extremism leading to Terrorism.
All country leaders will then sign the Jakarta Concord during the concluding part of the summit.
Reported by Aditya E.S. Wicaksono
(UU.KR-ARC/INE)
EDITED BY INE
(UU.KR-ARC/A/KR-BSR/O001)
Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
