President Prabowo, PM Wong Hold Leaders’ Retreat at Merdeka Palace

President Prabowo Subianto, Monday (07/06), held an annual Leaders’ Retreat meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta. The meeting served as an important opportunity for the two countries to strengthen their strategic partnership and discuss various priority issues of mutual interest.

PM Wong’s arrival at the Merdeka Palace was greeted by a guard of honor. The welcoming ceremony then continued with the playing of the national anthem “Majulah Singapura”, continued with the national anthem “Indonesia Raya”, as a symbol of respect and the strong friendship between the two countries.

Following the welcoming ceremony, President Prabowo and PM Wong introduced their respective members of delegation who accompany them during the bilateral meeting. The introduction was part of the initial series of Leaders’ Retreat, reflecting the commitment of the two Governments to strengthening cross-sector cooperation.

Before commencing the Leaders’ Retreat session, the two leaders first held a tête-à-tête meeting. In a warm and constructive atmosphere, President Prabowo and PM Wong discussed a number of strategic issues and various cooperation agenda of mutual concern to Indonesia and Singapore one-on-one.

President Prabowo said that this year’s Leaders’ Retreat is the second event held since he has taken office as the Indonesian President. The Head of State also recalled that PM Wong was the first leader of a friendly country to visit Indonesia early in his presidency.

“This is our second Leaders’ Retreat. I also recall that Prime Minister Lawrence Wong was the first head of state or high-ranking foreign official to pay a state visit to Indonesia after I have taken office as President of the Republic of Indonesia,” said President Prabowo.

In addition, the annual meeting also resulted in 26 strategic collaborations across various sectors. These agreements reflect the increasingly close strategic partnership between Indonesia and Singapore in various fields, including in the economy, investment, defense, energy, environment, digital transformation, and human resource development.

The annual Leaders’ Retreat bilateral meeting is expected to further strengthen the partnership between Indonesia and Singapore and result in concrete steps to expand mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. (BPMI of Presidential Secretariat) (JAS/LW)