Coordinating Minister Airlangga: RI-Malaysia Cooperation Strengthens Regional Economic Resilience

Coordinating Minister for the Economy of the Republic of Indonesia Airlangga Hartarto conveyed the importance of strengthening investment and trade cooperation intra-ASEAN, especially between Indonesia and Malaysia, as part of efforts to strengthen regional economic resilience.

In his statement after the bilateral meeting of the Republic of Indonesia (RI), at the Presidential Palace complex, Jakarta, Friday, June 27, Airlangga said that ASEAN's main strength lies in the domestic economic resilience and integration of regional supply chains.

"First, we need intra-ASEAN trade and intra-ASEAN investment, we must encourage it, because the strength base of ASEAN was first domestic economy. Second, regional supply chain," he said in response to the bilateral RI-Malaysia cooperation that needed to be developed, quoted by Antara.

He also emphasized that strategic countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia must be a priority in strengthening the regional economy.

According to Airlangga, this includes discussing ASEAN's position in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which is increasingly strategic in the context of global cooperation, including with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Airlangga also revealed plans for a special economic zone synergy between Singapore, Johor (Malaysia), and Riau (Indonesia), which is considered to have great potential to be developed in an integrated manner.

According to him, this cross-border cooperation can encourage growth in the investment and trade sector, including export potential in the marine sector which is currently still being explored.

"Johor will also build a special economic zone. We have discussed how we can create synergies between Singapore, Johor, and Riau so that the economic potential in these three regions can be used as one," he said.