President Jokowi Arrives Home After Visiting Autsralia-New Zealand

Jakarta, (Antara) - President Joko Widodo arrived home on Tuesday morning after visiting Australia and New Zealand since Friday.

Deputy for Protocol, Press and Media of the Presidential Secretariat Bey Machmudin said in a press statement the Presidential plane with him and entourage aboard landed at Jakarta's Halim Perdanakusuma airbase at 4:50 a.m.

He was welcomed on arrival by coordinating minister for maritime affairs Luhut Pandjaitan, cabinet secretary Pramono Anung, presidential chief of staff Moeldoko, police chief General Tito Karnavian, army chief of staff General Mulyono, navy chief of staff Admiral Ade Supandi, airforce chief of staff Marshal Yuyu Sutisna, Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan and chairman of Jakarta legislative assembly Prasetyo Edi Marsudi.

President Jokowi visited Australia for three days to attend the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit and CEO Forum as well as a meeting with prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

At the CEO Forum he invited Australian businessmen to invest in ASEAN region seeing its potential as a new world economic axis.

"The world economic axis is moving from Atlantic to Pacific. The highest economic growth is  in Asia Pacific and it is ASEAN that stays in the middle of Asia Pacific," he said.

In a two-day visit to New Zealand on Sunday and Monday President Joko Widodo held a bilateral talk with New Zealand's governor Patsy Reddy, prime minister Jacinda Ardern, opposition leader Simon Bridges and company CEOs.

He promoted Indonesian coffee in the meetings with the New Zealand officials as New Zealanders who enjoy coffee very much.

Indonesia on the other hand is known as one of the world's biggest producers. "Do not forget when you drink coffee be sure it is Indonesian coffee," he said at a luncheon at Government House.

President Joko Widodo hoped coffee diplomacy would be the new binding factor in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

"Coffee  would be the new glue for our bilateral relations that have developed well for the past 60 years," he said.

At the Indonesia-New Zealand Business Forum in Auckland the Indonesian delegation also promoted coffee besides palm oil, renewable energy and workforce.

Indonesia recorded sales of commodities worth US$9.7 million and US$6 million of it from the sale of coffee.(*)
Reported by Agus Salim