Indonesian President Joko Widodo and US President Barrack Obama shake hands when they meet in the White House. (Source: AP)Indonesian President Joko Widodo said that his country is willing to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in his talks with US President Barrack Obama in the White House on October 26 (local time).
Speaking at a joint press conference with his US counterpart after the talks, President Joko Widodo affirmed Indonesia has the intention of joining the TPP.
Indonesia expressed its interest in the TPP on many occasions but this was the first time Southeast Asia’s biggest economy seriously expressed its intention of joining the agreement that the US and 11 partners completed negotiations.
For his part, U.S. President Obama said President Joko Widodo has been leading Indonesia on the right direction and expressed willingness to cooperate with the Southeast Asian country.
At the talks, the two presidents also discussed issues relating to the fight against the so-called Islamic State and climate change.
They also touched upon maritime security, including tensions in the East Sea.
President Obama said the two sides discussed the importance of the cooperation within the framework of ASEAN and East Asian forums in order to cement international law and order in the face of some countries’ behaviours in maritime navigation.
According to the Indonesian Presidential Office chief Pramono Anung, President Joko Widodo will cut his five-day trip to the US by one day because of the crisis of haze pollution in Sumatra and Borneo. Instead of visiting to San Francisco to meet leaders of tech giants Apple and Google, the President will set out for home on October 27 evening.
Despite the scale of the two economies, the US - Indonesia trade stood at only 28 billion USD in 2014, which is considered far below their potential.-VNA
