President Jokowi Encourages Strengthening RI-Brazil Forestry Partnerships

President Jokowi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 Summit at the Rihga Royal Hotel, Hiroshima, Japan (ANTARA/HO-Buro Press Secretariat of the President of the Republic of Indonesia)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is pushing for strengthening the forestry partnership between Indonesia and Brazil during a bilateral meeting with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the G7 Summit at the Rihga Royal Hotel, Hiroshima, Japan.

Forestry issues are the main topic of the two leaders considering that Indonesia and Brazil are two of the countries with the largest tropical forest area in the world.

Therefore, President Jokowi emphasized the importance of solidity among forest-owning countries, including for example the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

"More than 30 percent of tropical forests (world) are owned by Indonesia-Brazil and the Democratic Republic of the Congo," Jokowi said in a press statement reported by ANTARA, Saturday, May 20.

President Jokowi and President Lula discussed cooperation in handling climate change, in which the two leaders conveyed the commitment of their respective countries to the issue.

Both President Jokowi and President Lula agreed to encourage developed countries to realize their commitment to providing climate change funds.

The two heads of state had stated that they believed that Indonesia-Brazil relations would increase in the future.

President Jokowi and President Lula agreed to increase cooperation in developing livestock and procuring meat for Indonesia.

President Lula indirectly conveyed an invitation so that President Jokowi would be pleased to make a state visit to Brazil.

"I really hope for President Widodo's arrival to Brazil and we will be able to discuss more cooperation between two major developing countries such as Indonesia and Brazil," said President Lula.

Also accompanying the President in the bilateral meeting of Indonesia-Brazil were Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi.

Also present were SOE Minister Erick Thohir, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, and East Asian Director of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Santo Darmosumarto.