"We asked Ethiopia to consider opening an embassy in Jakarta more seriously," Indonesian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister A. M. Fachir said after meeting with his Ethiopian counterpart Berhane Gebre-Christos on the second day of the commemorative Asian-African Conference (AAC) at the Jakarta Convention Center here on Monday.
Fachir added that the opening of the Ethiopian embassy in Jakarta could further improve cooperation between the two countries.
"Indonesia opened an embassy in Addis Ababa in 1964, so we hope Ethiopia follows suit," he remarked.
In response, Ethiopian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Berhane Gebre-Christos noted that the matter would be discussed internally by his country and a decision on it would be made soon.
"We will come to a decision soon because we believe that the idea of opening an embassy in Jakarta is very good," he stated.
Based on the official website of the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry, Indonesia and Ethiopia have shared warm relations since the first AAC in 1955, and in 1964, Indonesia opened its embassy in Addis Ababa, while Ethiopia established its embassy in Seiou as a representative accredited for Indonesia.
The two nations have singed various cooperation agreements, including on economic and technical cooperation, rubber development, and on cooperation between their news agencies.
Also, on January 2015, the foreign affairs ministers of Indonesia and Ethiopia signed a memorandum of understanding on a Bilateral Consultation Forum in Addis Ababa.
Furthermore, trade between the two countries has continued to increase, recording US$94.1 million in 2010, US$106.8 million in 2011, US$318.3 million in 2012, and US$349.1 million in 2013.
The meeting between Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Fachir and his Ethiopian counterpart was aimed at discussing efforts to increase bilateral relations between the nations, South-South cooperation, and their role in the international forum and the interests of both countries.
The second day of the 60th anniversary celebrations of the AAC on Monday began with an Asian-African Ministerial Meeting (AAMM), scheduled from 9:20 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
The AAMM followed the Senior Officials Meeting on Sunday, in which all delegates agreed to the three draft documents to be produced at the Asian-African Summit, including the "Bandung Messages," strengthening of the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership and the Palestinian Declaration.
An Asian-African Business Summit is scheduled to be held on April 21 and 22. The first day of the summit is scheduled on April 21, and on April 22, President Joko Widodo will hold a dinner in honor of the heads of states and governments attending the event.
The heads of states and governments will participate in a historical walk in Bandung on April 24.
Reporting by Michael Teguh Adiputra Siahaan
(H-YH/INE)
EDITED BY INE.
Editor: Suryanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2015
