JAKARTA - Russian President Vladimir Putin did not close the uncomfortable side when meeting with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. In the midst of a relationship that is called strategic, he actually revealed that the pace of trade between the two countries began to slow down at the beginning of this year.
Putin said that Indonesian-Russian trade had increased by 12 percent last year. However, this trend did not last long.
"At the beginning of this year, we witnessed a slight slowdown," Putin said at a bilateral meeting in the Kremlin on Monday, April 13.
Putin's statement is a sign that economic relations are not yet fully stable. On the one hand, the two countries have just agreed on a strategic partnership. On the other hand, trade performance has actually begun to stagnate.
Putin stressed that there was still room to improve the situation. He said both parties had various ways to encourage trade, including through a joint government commission.
The focus of cooperation is also expanded to vital sectors, namely energy, space, agriculture, industry, and pharmaceuticals. The fields of education and relations between foreign ministries are also said to continue to be strengthened.
Indonesia's entry into BRICS is considered to open up new opportunities. Russia also offers another path through cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union.
On the Indonesian side, Prabowo admitted that most of the agreements were indeed fast-paced. However, he also highlighted that there were still parts that were not synchronized, especially in the monetary sector which he would oversee directly.
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