Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates today signed a free trade agreement, strengthening economic ties between Southeast Asia’s largest economy and the major oil producer Gulf state, Reuters reports.
The Indonesian Trade Ministry’s Director General of International Trade Negotiations Djatmiko Bris Witjaksono told the news agency the agreement had been signed in Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital.
This came as Indonesia’s Defence Minister, Prabowo Subianto, is on an official visit to the UAE where he met yesterday with his Emirati counterpart Mohammed Bin Ahmed Al Bowardi.
During the meeting, the parties discussed cooperation and joint coordination between the two friendly countries in the defence and military fields and ways to enhance them in the best interest of the two countries.
Al Bowardi stressed the UAE’s desire to bolster ties with Indonesia in various domains, especially in issues related to defence and military Affairs and methods to boost them.
The two sides attended the signing of Memoranda of Understanding and agreements, including a protocol agreement between the Ministries of Defence in both countries regarding cooperation in the field of defence industries and military procurement, a protocol agreement between the Indonesian Ministry of Defence and the Tawazun Economic Council.
The two sides also signed a MoU for cooperation in the design, manufacture and marketing of mechanisms fields between the Indonesian Ministry of Defence and the UAE company Calidus.
