The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, where both leaders discussed strategies to advance the comprehensive partnership established between Indonesia and New Zealand in 2018, according to a statement from the Presidential Secretariat.
“Our bilateral trade has grown nearly 10 percent annually over the past five years, yet we can aim higher. In various sectors, cooperation has been strong, and I hope this continues to grow,” President Prabowo said.
Prime Minister Luxon reaffirmed New Zealand’s commitment to enhancing trade relations and acknowledged Indonesia’s support in advancing the ASEAN–New Zealand Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) and other regional initiatives.
Luxon also cited mechanisms such as the CSP, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and updates to the ASEAN–Australia–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) as instruments to strengthen regional economic ties.
Both leaders emphasized cooperation in human resource development, particularly through educational exchanges.
President Prabowo expressed Indonesia’s intention to send more students to study medicine and dentistry in New Zealand while welcoming New Zealand teachers to support English language training programs for Indonesian workers.
“We really need doctors and dentists, and I also request that if there are teachers from New Zealand who can help us, we want to expand English courses for our workers who plan to go abroad,” Prabowo said.
During the meeting, the two leaders also discussed the importance of expanding market access and increasing trade value, which reached US$1.91 billion in 2024.
Prabowo and Luxon agreed to pursue concrete cooperation that delivers tangible benefits to the citizens of both nations while contributing to stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
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Translator: Andi, Kenzu
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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