Prabowo alludes to maritime-educational cooperation when meeting with the British PM

President Prabowo Subianto and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer/ANTARA/HO-Personal Documentation

JAKARTA - President Prabowo Subianto while chatting with British Prime Minister (PM) Keir Starmer briefly touched on maritime and educational cooperation to be agreed upon by Indonesia and Britain today.

In the room where the meeting took place, which is on the 2nd floor of the British PM's office, 10 Downing Street, London, President Prabowo welcomed the cooperation, considering that the two areas of focus are strategic sectors for the two countries.

The maritime cooperation that will be agreed upon includes, among others, the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the manufacture of fishing boats for fishermen in the country.

Meanwhile, regarding cooperation in the field of education, the Indonesian Government will sign a cooperation with the Russell Group, which is a group of 24 top universities in the UK.

Then, PM Starmer, in his meeting with President Prabowo, expressed his happiness at the close relationship and cooperation that has been established between Indonesia and the UK.

Reported by ANTARA, at the British Prime Minister's office, several ministers from the Red and White Cabinet accompanied President Prabowo, including Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto, Minister of Investment and Industrialization/CEO Danantara Rosan Perkasa Roeslani, Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Brian Yuliarto, Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, and Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya.

On a separate occasion, the Minister of State Secretary (Mensesneg) Prasetyo Hadi explained that the MoU on the construction of fishing boats was aimed at helping fishermen, mobilizing the local economy, and protecting the potential wealth of fish so that it can be enjoyed by the Indonesian people.

The reason is that 2/3 of Indonesia's territory is the sea, so the need for fishing boats reaches at least tens of thousands of units.

"We open cooperation with anyone, both from within the country and abroad, to increase our possession of fishing boats," said Pras in response to a journalist's question.

Meanwhile, for cooperation in the field of education with the Russell Group, Deputy Minister (Wamen) of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Stella Christie explained that President Prabowo only wanted to partner with top universities in the UK.

"It just so happens that I am also directly preparing with Russel Group University. This Russel Group University is a group of 24 universities that are the top of the UK. So, President only wants to discuss the top. So, don't bring universities indiscriminately from outside, so only the most, the most top once outside to be able to come to Indonesia," said Deputy Minister Stella when answering a journalist's question when met at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta, Thursday (15/1).