JAKARTA: Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi held bilateral discussions with her German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Bonn on Friday (17/02).
“The focus of the G20 meeting is on maintaining peace in a complex world, as it will contribute to creating stable conditions that will create room for development,” Retno said.
The two minsters highlighted the importance of international and multilateral partnerships to create peace, stability and global welfare.
They expressed hope that a stronger push for multilateral partnerships will counter rising nationalism and protectionist policies in several countries.
“Various global challenges will not be countered by any nations individually, and they require strong international and multilateral partnerships,” Retno said.
The two ministers also discussed developments following President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s visit to Germany in April last year, especially in the economic, energy, maritime and vocational education sectors.
Retno and Gabriel agreed to discuss expansion of the Indonesian-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IE-CEPA).
“We are inviting Germany’s private sector to collaborate with Indonesia in support of vocational education through internships and ‘training for trainee’ programs,” Retno said.
Indonesia and Germany are the two largest economies in South East Asia and the European Union. Germany is also Indonesia’s main trade partner in the EU, with bilateral trade worth $6.1 billion in 2015. German investments in Indonesia amounted to $133.2 million last year.
