Indonesia reiterates support for Palestine

By Seda Sevencan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi on Wednesday reiterated his country’s support for Palestine.

“Indonesia and Türkiye share the same position when it comes to Palestine,” Marsudi said at a joint news conference with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Türkiye’s capital Ankara.

“The position of Indonesia is very clear. We want to always defend humanity and justice for Palestine, for the Palestinian people. What Indonesia wants to see is an immediate and lasting cease-fire, unhindered and sustained humanitarian assistance, a credible peace process toward a two-state solution and Palestine’s full membership in the UN,” the minister said.

Israel has waged an unrelenting offensive on the Palestinian enclave since a cross-border attack by Hamas last Oct. 7 which killed some 1,200 people.

More than 34,500 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and thousands injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

Israel has also imposed a crippling siege on the seaside enclave, leaving most of its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

- Indonesia, Türkiye committed to contribute to global peace

Marsudi said that Indonesia and Türkiye are committed to contribute to global peace and prosperity, adding: “We agreed to use next year celebration of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations to bring our bilateral relations to a higher level.”

She mentioned that during a bilateral meeting with Fidan, they discussed bilateral relations and global issues.

"We are committed to expedite finalization of Indonesia-Türkiye Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and welcome the plan to convene the 5th round negotiation of CEPA this year. We do believe that finalization of CEPA will be a game changer and increase our bilateral trade and investment."

On defense cooperation, Marsudi said they also decided to have the 2 + 2 format meeting. “We welcome the ongoing military and defense dialogue.”

"We also welcome the strategic cooperation on development of defense industry. We did a joint production on Medium Weight Tank (MWT) and committed to work together for joint marketing," she added.

Marsudi also addressed the fight against transnational crimes, saying: "We welcome the signing of Security Cooperation Agreement as an umbrella for cooperation and hope that the MOU on counter-terrorism and on combating transnational crime could be finalized soon."