Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi (right) speaks in a video conference with Malaysian Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein (left, on TV screen). (Twitter/@Menlu_RI) Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi engaged with herMalaysian counterpart Hishammuddin Hussein through a video conference on March20, discussing the need for the two neighboring countries to maintain closecollaboration amid the global COVID-19 pandemic.
“Weagreed on the importance of strong cooperation between the two countries, bothbilaterally and within the framework of ASEAN, in addressing COVID 19,” Retnowrote in her Twitter account.
Hishammuddinwrote in a Facebook post that the majority of their video conference focused onCOVID-19, and both sides shared experience in handling stranded citizens abroaddue to travel restrictions imposed by countries in which they were.
Inaddition, the two ministers looked into the Malaysians and Indonesians whoparticipated in tabligh (Islamic mass gathering) and how they could manage theoutbreak of COVID-19 transmissions from these events.
Malaysiahas experienced a spike in coronavirus infections following a tabligh eventattended by more than 16,000 participants from countries in Southeast Asia,prompting local authorities to impose a partial lockdown in view of thesignificant surge of cases.
Asof 13:00 on March 21, the country had reported a total of 1,030 confirmedCOVID-19 cases - the highest number of infections in Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile,Indonesia has the highest death toll from the novel coronavirus among its ASEANpeers, with 32 fatalities to date out of 369 cases./.
VNA
