Jakarta (VNA) – Ten years after its establishment (June 27, 2013 – June 27, 2023),the Vietnam - Indonesia strategic partnership has been consolidated and strengthened across many areas, said formerIndonesian Ambassador to Vietnam Ibnu Hadi.

Talking to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)'s resident reportersin Jakarta on the occasion of the anniversary, Ibnu said that the Vietnam-Indonesia strategic partnership is aimed at the benefit and prosperity of the two peoples, so economiccooperation, particularly in trade and investment, is the main focus of the partnership.

The diplomat noted that during his term from 2016 to 2020, thetwo-way trade turnover increased from about 5 billion USD to 9 billion USD, andreached more than 14 billion USD in 2022.

Regarding investment, the capital flows from Indonesia to Vietnam andvice versa reached 670 million USD by 2022, of which Indonesianinvestment capital accounts for 620 million USD. The former ambassador said the amount of Indonesian investment in Vietnam is still quite modest, whileVietnam still has few investment projects in Indonesia.

According to him, to some extent, it isreasonable because Vietnam is focusing on attracting foreign direct investment.However, he believes that in the future, Vietnam and Indonesia can see moreinvestment projects from both sides.

Regarding connectivity - an important factor to promote economiccooperation, trade, investment, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges betweenthe two countries, Ibnu said that remarkable progress has been made, particularly inavia♒tion with direct flights launched between the two countries.

However, the two countries need to further increase connectivity to facilitate trade, he said. He especially looks forward to the opening of direct flights between Jakarta and Hanoi, which he said is his dream for years.

For directions for cooperation in the coming time, Ibnu said digita♕l transformation is a potential area forcooperation, particularly when the Government of Vietnam is prioritizingdigital transformation in all areas. 

Besides, Ibnu said that the two countries can also work together in infrastructure development including seaports, roads, andrailways.

Assessing Vietnam's role in the ASEAN, Ibnu said with Vietnam’sgrowth and potential, its role in ASEAN will certainly increase a lot and the country isexpected to play a more important role in building ASEAN.

According to the former ambassador, Vietnam is aware of its growingrole, and that i𒐪t can play more roles than before. Inparticular, Vietnam can serve as a bridge for ASEAN to be more united andconnected" thanks to its good relationship with Laos, Camboꦕdia, andMyanmar.

Vietnam has played a very active role not only within but alsooutside the ASEAN region, he said. This was proved when the country held the ASEAN Chair in 2020- a year with many challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The diplomatrecalled that that year, almost all ASEAN meetings took place online, butVietnam played a very positive and constructive role to move ASEAN forward. Ibnu emphasized that, as active members of ASEAN, cooperationbetween Vietnam – the third most populous country in the region - and Indonesia- the most populous country in the region - is very important for the peace andprosperity of the whole bloc. Through their bilateral relationship, Vietnam andIndonesia also contribute a lot to ASEAN, both directly and indirectly. Regarding the East Sea issue, the diplomat said the successful conclusion of thenegotiation process on the maritime border between Indonesia and Vietnam hascontributed greatly to the region. That agreement will positively impact theongoing negotiations among other countries in the region, he said./.