Indonesian President Prabowo to arrive on four-day visit to India; several MoUs expected to be signed

New Delhi [India], January 23 (ANI): Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will be on a four-day visit to India on Thursday during which he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attend the Republic Day Parade as Chief Guest.  

Apart from a comprehensive review of bilateral ties, discussions during the visit are also expected to include regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Several MoUs are expected to be signed and discussions are expected to cover areas such as food security, energy security and health care, sources told ANI.

They said Indonesia’s need for doctors and nurses and potential for collaboration in digital mapping for agriculture and renewable energy are likely to be part of discussions.

The sources said discussions are also expected to include ways to strengthen ties through cultural exchanges such as movie productions, educational initiatives, student exchanges and research collaborations besides trade, exploring better flight connectivity including the Delhi-Jakarta route and greater people-to-people connections.

This will be the first visit of President Prabowo to India as Head of State. Sukarno, the first President of Indonesia, was the Chief Guest at India's first Republic Day in 1950. A 352-member marching and band contingent from Indonesia will participate in the Parade on the Kartvya Path in the national capital.

This will be the first time that an Indonesian marching and band contingent will participate in a national day parade abroad.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on President Prabowo on Friday. On Saturday, the visiting leader will be later accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Before talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House, the visiting leader  will lay a wreath at Rajghat.

Indonesia is now part of the BRICS group and had expressed its appreciation for India’s support towards its membership of the forum of emerging economies.  

Sources said Indonesia is interested in learning from India and other countries to strengthen its defence system and is keen on technology transfer. They said a defence deal is unlikely to be finalised during this visit and that India and Indonesia also have robust defence cooperation with the Defence Cooperation Agreement signed in 2018.

The two countries are close maritime neighbours with cultural and trade ties spanning over a millennia.  The annual Bali Yatra festival, which commemorates the historic voyages by Indian seafarers who would set sail to Bali, is one such example of these cultural linkages.

Indonesia is one of India’s largest trading partners in the ASEAN region. Bilateral trade in 2023-24 reached US$ 29.40 billion. Indian investments in Indonesia amount to USD 1.56 billion in infrastructure, power, textiles, steel, automotive, mining, banking and consumer goods sectors.

President Prabowo will be the fourth Indonesian President to attend India's Republic Day celebrations.

PM Modi paid an official visit to Indonesia in 2018. During the visit, India-Indonesia bilateral ties were elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and a shared vision of India-Indonesia Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific was also adopted.

PM Modi met President Prabowo on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in November last year. This was the first meeting between the two leaders.  (ANI)