Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi paid a visit to Bulgaria on Sept 15-16 in a bid to garner the nation’s support to become a gateway for Indonesian products to the European Union market.

At a meeting of the Indonesian foreign minister and her Bulgarian counterpart, Ekaterina Zaharieva in Sofia on Sunday, both nations agreed to intensify bilateral relations in several fields, especially politics and economy.

Bulgaria imports a third of its crude palm oil requirements from Indonesia, the Foreign Ministry noted in a written statement released on Tuesday.

Trade between both nations swelled 330 percent in 2018 from that of the year before. Indonesia also recorded a 15 percent rise in the number of Bulgarian tourists.

Both foreign ministers remain resolved to encouraging more intensive business interactions to meet the potential of economic cooperation between the nations.

Minister Marsudi capitalized on her working visit to Bulgaria by bringing along a 17-member business delegation from the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).

The 17 Indonesian businessmen are engaged in the areas of palm oil, energy, information and communication technology, agriculture, tourism, food and beverage, and furniture, among others.

During her Bulgaria visit, Minister Marsudi also opened a business forum and witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding between both nations’ chambers of commerce and industry.

Furthermore, Marsudi had visited Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and Prime Minister Boyko Borissov on Monday.

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Translator: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani/Suhar
Editor: Sri Haryati
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