Some ambassadors, specifically, expressed their appreciation for Indonesias role in addressing important ASEAN and humanitarian issues, Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi stated, after the ambassadors credentials submission to President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) at the Merdeka Palace, Thursday.
“(Indonesias policy) regarding the humanitarian issue in Rakhine State (Myanmar) was appreciated by almost all the ambassadors who met the President today,” Marsudi said.
The new ambassadors also lauded Indonesias economic growth, which is relatively higher than the average growth of the world economy.
The high economic growth of Indonesia, which reached up to 5 percent last year, has become a trigger for some countries such as Bangladesh, Portugal, and Rwanda to strengthen their economic ties with Indonesia.
Bangladesh, who imported 150 railway carriages from Indonesia in 2016, also tried to import Indonesian coal to support its domestic industry.
Meanwhile, Rwanda wants to intensify its trade cooperation with Indonesia after the trade value of the two countries rose by 12-fold in 2016. The African country also wishes to open an embassy in Indonesia.
Besides Rwanda, Marshall Islands also expressed its interest to open an honorary council in Indonesia, while supporting Indonesias position on various international issues.
Indonesia is establishing cooperation with France for the Palestine peace process by supporting an international peace conference, which will be held in Paris from January 14 to 15.
Indonesia, France, and other countries have been continuously collaborating to promote international peace process, addressing the long-term conflict between Palestine and Israel.
Moreover, Indonesia works together with Morocco in countering terrorism and promoting the concept of moderate Islam.
Earlier, Minister Marsudi accompanied President Jokowi to receive credentials from the eight new ambassadors.
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Republic of France to Indonesia Jean-Charles Berthonnet, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco to Indonesia Benabdellah Ouadia, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the Portuguese Republic to Indonesia Rui Fernando Sucena Do Carmo, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of the US to Indonesia Joseph R. Donovan, and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Bangladesh to Indonesia Major General Azmal Kabir handed over their credentials to the Indonesian president.
President Jokowi also received credentials from Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Mauritius to Indonesia Isop Patel, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Rwanda to Indonesia Guillaume Kavuruganda, and Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Marshall Islands Tom D. Kijiner.
Among those ambassadors, five will be based in Jakarta, while three others will be posted outside the capital.