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Indonesia

Overview

Singapore and Indonesia enjoy warm and friendly ties. Our Leaders and Ministers work closely together bilaterally, as well as at ASEAN and various international fora, to advance common interests. We have regular high-level exchanges, including the annual Leaders’ Retreat and the Six Bilateral Economic Working Groups Ministerial Meeting. These exchanges strengthen our ties with Indonesia both at the central government and at the provincial levels.

Our relations are underpinned by strong economic cooperation. Bilateral trade reached $59 billion in 2019, and Singapore has been the top foreign investor in Indonesia since 2014. Both countries also have substantive cooperation across a wide range of sectors, including education, culture, defence and the environment.

Recent Highlights

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    • Indonesian Minister of Home Affairs Tito Karnavian visited Singapore on 15 January. He was conferred the Darjah Utama Bakti Cemerlang (Distinguished Service Order) by President Halimah Yacob in recognition of his role in strengthening bilateral ties between the Indonesian National Police and the Singapore Police Force.
    • Minister (Trade & Industry) Chan Chun Sing visited Jakarta on 28 January. Mr Chan met Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang, Minister of Trade Agus Suparmanto, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Wishnutama Kusubandio, and Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan.
    • President Halimah Yacob made a State Visit to Indonesia from 3 to 6 February. President Halimah met Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Vice-President Ma’ruf Amin, Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, Indonesian religious and inter-faith leaders, business leaders, and overseas Singaporeans. President Halimah also held a dialogue with students from the Gadjah Mada University on the theme “Singapore and Indonesia: Strengthening Bridges and Progressing Together”. President Halimah and Indonesian President Joko Widodo witnessed the signing of the updated Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Indonesia and the Government of the Republic of Singapore for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance, between Minister (Prime Minister’s Office) and Second Minister (Finance) (Education) Indranee Rajah and Indonesian Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati.
    • Senior Minister of State (Defence) (Foreign Affairs) Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman visited Jambi City, Jambi Province and Pekanbaru, Riau Province from 10 to 13 February. In Jambi City, Dr Maliki met Jambi Governor Fachrori Umar, Jambi City Mayor Syarif Fasha, members of the Jambi Provincial Legislative Council, including Deputy Speakers Burhanuddin and Rocky Candra. In Pekanbaru, Dr Maliki met Riau Governor Syamsuar and Vice Mayor Ayat Cahyadi. The visit is part of Singapore’s efforts to strengthen engagement and cooperation with Indonesia’s regions.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke to Indonesian President Joko Widodo over the phone on 11 March to reaffirm Singapore’s commitment to work with Indonesia to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, including on the provision of medical equipment in support of Indonesia’s COVID-19 response.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong made a phone call to Indonesian President Joko Widodo on 24 May to express his greetings for Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Prime Minister Lee reaffirmed his friendship with President Joko Widodo, and his strong support for the close cooperation between both countries.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong received a phone call from Indonesian President Joko Widodo on 28 July. President Joko Widodo congratulated Prime Minister Lee on the result of the Singapore General Election, and both sides reaffirmed the excellent ties between Singapore and Indonesia.
    • Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi visited Singapore from 24 to 26 August, during which she called on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and met Minister (Foreign Affairs) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.
    • Minister (Education) Ong Ye Kung visited Jakarta and Central Java from 8 to 10 January. In Jakarta, Mr Ong met several political and business leaders, including Minister for Education and Culture Dr Muhadjir Effendy and Minister for Industry Airlangga Hartarto. In Central Java, Mr Ong attended the official opening of the Kendal Furniture and Wood Processing Industry Polytechnic, located in the Kendal Industrial Park (KIP). KIP is a joint venture between Singapore’s Sembcorp Development and Indonesia’s PT Jababeka, which was opened by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo in November 2016. Mr Ong and Minister Airlangga also witnessed the signing of an MOU between Singapore Polytechnic and Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry to deepen cooperation in human resource education and training related to Industry 4.0.
    • Minister (Foreign Affairs) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan visited Jakarta from 16 to 18 July. During the visit, Dr Balakrishnan met Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Vice-President-Elect Ma’ruf Amin, former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairman Bapak Muhaimin Iskandar, and former Jakarta Vice-Governor Bapak Sandiaga Uno, and other Indonesian personalities.
    • Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his spouse, Ibu Iriana Joko Widodo, along with the leaders of Malaysia and Brunei, attended the Bicentennial edition of Singapore’s National Day Parade on 9 August at the invitation of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. President Joko Widodo and Ibu Iriana also met Prime Minister Lee and Mrs Lee at the National Gallery prior to the start of the Parade.
    • Senior Minister of State (Defence) (Foreign Affairs) Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman visited Batam in Riau Islands (KEPRI) Province on 15 August 2019. Dr Maliki called on Acting KEPRI Governor Bapak H. Isdianto and met with BP Batam Chairman Edy Putra Irawady. Dr Maliki was also the Guest of Honour at the Singapore National Day Reception organised by the Singapore Consulate-General in Batam.
    • Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean visited Jakarta from 11 to 12 September. SM Teo met Indonesian Vice-President-Elect Ma’ruf Amin and Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan.
    • Minister (Trade & Industry) Chan Chun Sing visited Jakarta from 16 to 18 September to co-chair the 9th Singapore-Indonesia Six Bilateral Economic Working Groups Ministerial Meeting (6WGMM) with Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution. Both Ministers discussed bilateral cooperation on infrastructure, human capital development, and the digital economy. Mr Chan also met former Indonesian President and PDI-P Chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri, former Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto, and former Jakarta Vice-Governor Bapak Sandiaga Uno.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo met in Singapore for their fourth Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat on 8 October. During the Retreat, both Leaders reaffirmed the excellent state of bilateral relations and took stock of the comprehensive bilateral cooperation across the economic, people-to-people, and security sectors. The Leaders tasked their officials to organise a Singapore-Indonesia Civil Service Forum and welcomed the signing of an MOU on Archives Cooperation between the National Archives of Singapore, and an Agreement between Indonesia and Singapore on Electronic Data Exchange to Facilitate and Secure Trade. The good working relationship and the strong relations between Singapore and Indonesia enabled both sides to discuss longstanding issues in an open and constructive manner. Two such issues are airspace management and military training in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. In this regard, the Leaders welcomed the agreed framework for discussions, which laid out the core principles and considerations concerning these issues. The framework acknowledges that the core interests and rights of both countries must be recognised and respected, and that Singapore and Indonesia will negotiate subsequent agreements on these two issues which are durable and for the long haul. The Leaders noted that the framework was a sound and comprehensive basis to work out solutions to these issues, separately and concurrently.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Mrs Lee Hsien Loong and Minister (Education) Ong Ye Kung visited Jakarta on 20 October to attend the inauguration of Indonesian President Joko Widodo for a second term.
    • Singapore hosted a visit by Indonesian regional leaders for the inaugural RISING Fellowship from 18 to 21 November. Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo had announced the RISING Fellowship at the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat in 2018. The theme for the Fellowship was “Industry 4.0 Transformation and Investment Promotion”. The regional leaders met Ministry (Trade & Industry) Chan Chun Sing and Minister (Foreign Affairs) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan. They were also hosted to lunch by Minister (National Development) and Second Minister (Finance) Lawrence Wong and engaged in a wide-ranging dialogue session with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister (Finance) Heng Swee Keat.
    • Speaker of Parliament Tan Chuan-Jin made an official visit to Jakarta from 18 to 20 November. He was accompanied by MPs Joan Pereira, Low Thia Khiang, Gan Thiam Poh, Henry Kwek, Saktiandi Supaat and Murali Pillai. Mr Tan and the MPs called on Indonesian President Joko Widodo, and met Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly Bambang Soesatyo and parliamentarians from the Indonesian House of Representatives Commission I and the Committee for Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation.
    • Minister (Foreign Affairs) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan visited Jakarta from 13 to 14 February. During the visit, Dr Balakrishnan met several Indonesian leaders, including Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, and Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto.
    • Senior Minister of State (Defence) (Foreign Affairs) Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman made a working visit to Jakarta and Surabaya from 13 to 15 March. He met Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs A.M. Fachir, Jakarta Vice-Governor Sandiaga Uno, Special Envoy for Interfaith Dialogue and Civilisation Affairs Dr Din Syamsuddin and Muhammadiyah Chairman Dr Haedar Nashir in Jakarta. In Surabaya, Dr Maliki met East Java Regional House of Representatives Speaker Abdul Halim Iskandar, media representatives and business leaders.
    • Minister (Foreign Affairs) Dr Vivian Balakrishnan visited Batam on 20 March to officiate the launch of the Nongsa Digital Park, together with Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi.
    • Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean visited Jakarta from 18 to 20 July. He met Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan, Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto, Commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces Hadi Tjahjanto, and Jakarta Governor Dr Anies Baswedan. DPM Teo also took the opportunity to interact with young Singapore professionals based in Jakarta, as well as Indonesian media personalities and senior business leaders.
    • Senior Minister of State (Defence) (Foreign Affairs) Dr Mohamad Maliki Osman made a working visit to Medan and Batam from 14 to 15 August. Dr Maliki was the Guest of Honour at the Singapore National Day receptions hosted by the Singapore Consulates-General in Medan and Batam, where he met members of the Singaporean community living in both provinces. In Medan, he met North Sumatra Provincial Secretary R. Sabrina, Medan Mayor Dzulmi Eldin, and North Sumatra Vice Governor-elect Musa Rajekshah. In Batam, SMS had a joint meeting with KEPRI Assistant for Economy and Development Syamsul Bahrum, Batam Mayor Muhammad Rudi, and BP Batam Chairman Lukita Dinarsyah. Dr Maliki also visited Nongsa Digital Park.
    • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Indonesian President Joko Widodo met in Bali for the Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat on 11 October. During the Retreat, the Leaders reaffirmed the excellent state of relations between Singapore and Indonesia, and agreed to continue building on this strong foundation of trust and mutually-beneficial cooperation. A total of seven MOUs and Agreements were signed in conjunction with the Retreat, including the Bilateral Investment Treaty, Cultural Cooperation Programme, and the MOU on Financial Technology Cooperation. The Leaders also agreed on a US$10 billion bilateral financial arrangement, comprising a bilateral local currency swap and USD repurchase agreement, and to cooperate on a “RISING Fellowship”, the aim of which is to strengthen ties between Singaporean and Indonesian regional leaders.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a ministry of the Government of Singapore responsible for conducting and managing diplomatic relations between Singapore and other countries and regions.

© 2024 Government of SingaporeLast updated 21 November 2024

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