NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue (L) and Speaker of the People’s Representative Council of Indonesia Puan Maharani pose for a photo before their talks in Jakarta on August 4. (Photo: VNA) In its article, Indonesia's Antara news agency wrote that the visit is very important andshows that Vietnam’s foreign policy attaches importance to bilateral relationswith Indonesia and wants to contribute to building a peaceful, stable, andprosperous environment in the region.
Regarding the two countries’ relations, the news agency said the Vietnamese and Indonesian people joined hands in solidarity to fight for nationalindependence. This was the result of intelligent leadership and friendship betweenVietnamese President Ho Chi Minh and Indonesian President Sukarno.
This year, the two countries are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their strategic partnership with the hope of further enhancingcooperation in all areas ranging from diplomacy, politics, economy, and cultureto people-to-people exchanges.
During the COVID-19pandemic, people of both countries promoted a spirit of mutual love, support,and help to fight the pandemic together.
At the height of the pandemic,the most tense and difficult time, leaders of Vietnam and Indonesiaregularly maintained diplomatic channels, exchanged views to overcomedifficulties, and discussed solutions to prevent the spread of the virus anddisease outbreaks.
The two countries also shared the burden with other ASEAN memberstates to establish a cooperation mechanism to contain COVID-19 and graduallyexpand vaccination networks for the public. Fighting and winning against the COVID-19pandemic, people of Vietnam and Indonesia joined hands to rebuild the nationaleconomies, according to the article.
Antara noted that the strong economic cooperation can be seen frombilateral trade turnover in 2021 reaching 11.5 billion USD, an increase of 40%compared to 2020, exceeding the 10 billion USD target set by the two sides in theaction plan to implement the strategic partnership.
To further strengthen the partnership in the future, the twosides agreed to promote the completion of the action plan for the 2024 - 2028period as the future orientation of bilateral cooperation, aiming for the valueof two-way trade to reach 15 billion USD by 2028.
Bilateral trade in the future is expected to continue to grow inline with the economic growth of each country.
Regarding parliamentary cooperation with other legislativebodies, Vietnam has actively participated in multilateral forums, regional andinternational inter-parliamentary organisations. The Vietnam NA and theIndonesian People's Representative Council signed a cooperation agreement inMarch 2010.
The Vietnamese NA wants to deepen the two countries’ strategic partnershipby further promoting cooperative activities with the Indonesian legislature,such as increasing the exchange of delegations at all levels and promotingexchange and cooperation between professional committees, as well as friendlyparliamentary groups.
The Vietnamese NA also wishes to promote the exchange ofinformation and experiences with the Indonesian parliament in the legislation work,oversight of issues related to post-pandemic economic and social recovery, andglobal issues such as digital transformation.
Antara said that in the multilateral field, Vietnam expressedits support and appreciation for Indonesia's role and initiatives in the ASEANChair throughout 2023 and Jakarta's efforts to continue to maintain peace,stability and prosperity at the regional level, especially in the SoutheastAsian region and at the global level.
With regard to the East Sea issue, Vietnam and other ASEANcountries are promoting practical and effective negotiations on a Code ofConduct (COC) in the East Sea and respecting the sovereignty and interests of the partiesconcerned in line with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Lawof the Sea (UNCLOS).
In a commentary posted on Asia Review, Kompasiana and RepublikMerdeka, Veeramalla Anjaiah, a senior research fellow at the Centre forSoutheast Asian Studies (CSEAS), said NA Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue’s visit clearlydemonstrates the interest of Vietnam’s leadership in its relations withIndonesia. The visit symbolises the spirit of solidarity and trust between theleaders of the two countries, who are willing to work towards deeper cooperationfor the sake of the people as well as peace and stability within SoutheastAsia. It will enhance cooperation between the legislative bodies of Vietnam andIndonesia.
Since assuming the post of NA Chairman in 2021,Hue has been trying to innovate the quality and operational efficiency of the legislature to help Vietnam reach new heights and become a prosperous, powerful,democratic, fair, and civilised country known today. He and his institutionhave been making great efforts to renew work styles, significantly contributingto socio-economic development.
Anjaiah said Vietnam and Indonesia established theirdiplomatic ties on December 30, 1955. In 2013, they elevated their ties to a strategic partnership.
Both are important member states of ASEAN andare striving to achieve high-income country status by 2045 through a shift fromresource-based industries to high-tech industries as well as increasededucational cooperation and knowledge-sharing between the two countries.
The researcher noted bothcountries have made major contributions to ASEAN and are committed to fosteringASEAN’s relevance amid global challenges. Both have similar perceptions aboutthe settlement of disputes by peaceful means in accordance with internationalrules, including the 1982 UNCLOS./.
VNA
