JAKARTA: Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad will begin his two-day official visit to Indonesia tomorrow.
This marks Dr Mahathir’s first official visit to a Southeast Asian country since assuming the prime minister role for the second time on May 10.
Wisma Putra, in a statement today, said the prime minister will be accompanied by his wife, Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali as well as officials from the Prime Minister’s Department as well as the Foreign Ministry.
In the course of his visit, Dr Mahathir will hold a private meeting with President Joko Widodo, better known as Jokowi, at Istana Bogor on Friday morning.
"This will be followed by a lunch hosted by the president to welcome Dr Mahathir and the Malaysian delegation,” said the statement.
Prior to that, the prime minister, who is scheduled to arrive in Jakarta at 6pm tomorrow, will also meet the Malaysian diaspora in Jakarta later that night.
The visit will open up an opportunity for both leaders to strengthen bilateral ties and the existing cooperation between Malaysia and Indonesia.
The visit will also allow Malaysia to present the government’s latest policies and stand, especially those which involve the mutual benefit of both nations.
In addition, both leaders will also exchange views on regional and global issues which are of mutual importance to Malaysia and Indonesia.
Indonesia is among one of Malaysia’s closest and most important neighbours.
In 2017, trade between the nations stood at RM72.63 billion (US$16.89 billion), marking a 22 per cent growth compared to 2016.
This places Indonesia as Malaysia’s seventh largest trading partner globally and the third biggest in Asean after Singapore and Thailand.
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