Press Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia after Bilateral Meeting with President of the Republic of Egypt during State Visit to Egypt, at the Al Ittihadiya Presidential Palace, Cairo, Egypt, December 18, 2024

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Your Excellency President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt;

Ministers, state officials;

The press.

First, I would like to once again thank President El-Sisi and the Government of Egypt for the warm welcome extended to me and my delegation. It is an honor for me to conduct the first state visit by a President of the Republic of Indonesia in the past ten years.

Egypt holds a special place in the hearts of the Indonesian people. Egypt was the first country to recognize Indonesia’s independence during our struggle for liberation against colonial powers. For Indonesians, Egypt is considered a very important country, and we are eager to continue and strengthen this relationship. In the past, Egypt under President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Indonesia under President Soekarno were leaders of the Non-Aligned Movement. Today, Egypt is also a leader of the Global South. Thus, I express my gratitude for this opportunity.

Our meeting earlier was very productive, intensive, and warm. We discussed several bilateral issues and regional matters. On bilateral relations, we already have good relations , but we aim to enhance it in the economic sector, particularly trade, in the sectors of industry, technology, education, tourism, and defense. We have agreed to follow up on these discussions.

We already have a Joint Trade Committee Council, but we want to elevate this further. Indonesia will soon send a high-level delegation to engage with our Egyptian Government counterpart and with Egyptian industries and business leaders. This delegation will study follow-up actions based on our agreements, particularly Indonesia’s potential involvement in the Special Economic Zone in Egypt, specifically the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZONE).

Additionally, we plan to process certain materials, such as palm oil, and establish a logistics hub. We also aim to establish a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between Egypt and Indonesia to further enhance our cooperation.

We deeply appreciate that more than 15,000 Indonesian students are studying in Egypt, the majority [are studying] at Al-Azhar University. We agreed that as countries with Muslim-majority populations, we share a commitment to promoting and preserving moderate Islam, Islam that is tolerant, protective of all people on Earth, and Islam that is free of suspicion or hatred. Our shared understanding is that we represent a moderate Islam, and we must safeguard and promote this to combat extremism and Islamophobia. We must eliminate suspicion or fear of Islam. Islam, at its core, seeks peace. For all these, once again, thank you for the excellent treatment of our students here. We also aim to explore additional areas to increase the number of Indonesian students studying in Egypt.

In terms of cultural cooperation, we also hope to promote pencak silat, our traditional martial art, which has gained popularity in Egypt. It would be wonderful if it could become an officially recognized sports in Egypt. I have received reports that more than 4,000 Egyptian youth are now learning pencak silat.

In defense cooperation, we proposed the establishment of a defense cooperation agreement between Egypt and Indonesia. I believe we can exchange expertise and knowledge in defense industries and technology. We could also exchange experts to share experiences.

During my meeting with President El-Sisi, we also discussed the issue of Palestine and the region. We agreed to continue efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East. We called for an immediate ceasefire in the region for humanitarian reasons. I deeply appreciate Egypt’s strategic role as a peace negotiator and a hub for facilitating humanitarian aid to Gaza and other Palestinian areas. We are grateful to Egypt for assisting with the delivery of humanitarian aid from Indonesia, particularly through El-Arish, an Egyptian airfield. We hope to increase this assistance and are confident that Egypt will continue to support us in this endeavor.

Once again, we will work together with Egypt to find urgent peace solutions for Palestine and the region. Of course, we fully support Palestinian independence and the two-state solution. We hope this visit marks the beginning of even stronger ties between Indonesia and Egypt.

Thank you.

Syukron.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

(AS/MMB)