Speaking at the Indonesian Embassy in Lisbon on the sidelines on his working visit to Portugal, he said he expects the relationship can be more productive despite the vast distance between the two countries.
Through a statement that ANTARA received on Sunday, he told the history of the first time the bilateral relationship between Indonesia and Portugal was established which began since Indonesia declared its sovereignty as a country.
In addition to recognizing Indonesia's independence, Portugal established its Representative Office in Indonesia on May 13, 1950.
The relationship became stronger in 1999 and it became a more productive.
One decade latter in 2010, Indonesia and Portugal created a new initiative at the Minister of Foreign Affairs Meeting by forming a bilateral consultation forum through a meeting in the UN forum.
Moreover, Indonesia and Portugal have a strong relationship due to cultural introduction by colonialists from Portugal in 1511 when it visited the region that would become Indonesia, Nusantara, Plate informed.
The cultured that they shared came in the form of language, music, religious practices, and historical architecture. This is an important asset for the bilateral relationship in the future, he explained.
One of the two countries' established cooperation through social cultural relationships includes the signing of Sister City cooperation between Sikka in Flores and Lagos Algavre City in 2007.
Then in 2012, similar cooperation was formed between Larantuka in East Flores (East Nusa Tenggara) and Fatima in Ourem District in May 2012.
The minister deemed that the effort to bolster Twin City cooperation is very important owing to the strong historical ties of Indonesia and Portugal.
He hopes there will be a new Sister City cooperation between Labuan Bajo, as one of Indonesia's super priority tourism destinations, with one of the cities in Portugal, such as Porto, Evora, or Braga.
In addition, he expects beneficial cooperation in more fields between Indonesia and Portugal.
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Translator: Livia K, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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