The commitment to increase the trade volume from the current US$3 billion was discussed in a one-on-one meeting between the two leaders and the bilateral meeting between Indonesia and Turkey at the Turkish Presidential Palace in Ankara on Thursday local time.
In a statement received on Friday, Erdogan announced that the two countries are exploring opportunities to broaden cooperation and establish new partnerships in the defense, construction, health, energy, and food industry sectors.
"We discussed potential steps to increase trade volume to reach a balanced and mutually beneficial target of US$10 billion. We also agreed to launch new initiatives for existing cooperation in defense, construction, health, energy, and the food industry," he remarked during a joint statement with Prabowo.
He revealed that the two countries also reviewed several ongoing cooperation projects and targeted several new collaborations, including joint plans to produce defense equipment.
In the tourism sector, the two presidents agreed to increase visits by boosting flight frequencies between their national airlines.
“We are pleased to see that 203 thousand Indonesian tourists visited Turkey last year, while almost 50 thousand Turkish tourists traveled to Indonesia. The number will continue to increase along with the additional flight schedules from each of our national airlines,” Erdogan noted.
On the same occasion, Prabowo emphasized a joint commitment to expanding market access for the two countries and to removing trade barriers between Indonesia and Turkey.
"Together, we must develop as an economic power. Only with economic strength can our voices be heard in this world,” President Prabowo affirmed.
To this end, the two presidents instructed the relevant ministers to complete the negotiation of the preferential trade agreement (PTA) as an initial step towards a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CEPA) between Indonesia and Turkey.
This visit to the Turkish Presidential Palace marks Prabowo's reciprocal state visit following Erdogan's trip to the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, on February 12, 2025.
Apart from a one-on-one meeting and a bilateral meeting, they also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Indonesian and Turkish governments and then delivered a joint statement.
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Translator: Genta Tenri/Galih Pradipta, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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