Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Prabowo Subianto discussed economic and defense cooperation during the bilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
According to the president's personal Instagram account @Prabowo, as observed on Wednesday, the meeting took place at Rio's Museum of Modern Arts on Tuesday (November 19) local time.
"(During the meeting with) France, we discussed economic cooperation. President Macron asked the France-Indonesia Business Forum to continue," Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto, who accompanied Prabowo at the meeting, stated, according to a video statement received here on Wednesday.
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The business forum referred to by Hartarto was organized by the Indonesian Embassy in Paris on September 26, 2024, and involved the public and private sectors from Indonesia and France.
Apart from economic cooperation, the two leaders also discussed military cooperation, according to Hartarto. However, he did not divulge details on any progress on the sector achieved during the bilateral discussion.
Nonetheless, President Macron commended Indonesia's plan to enhance its defense cooperation with France through the provision of Rafale jet fighters and joint development of submarines, the coordinating minister affirmed.
Indonesian shipbuilder PT PAL and French Naval Group have set up a joint venture to build the Scorpene Evolved submarine equipped with advanced propulsion and weaponry technology.
The collaboration allows Indonesia to receive knowledge transfer from France and strengthens the nation's maritime industry's self-sufficiency.
Meanwhile, Indonesia's Defense Ministry has also completed the three contracts necessary to purchase 42 Rafale fighter jets produced by Dassault Aviation. The first Rafale fighter jets are expected to arrive in Indonesia by early 2026.
