Indonesia, Russia discuss closer defense cooperation

 Indonesia's Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin received Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Sergei Gennadievich Tolchenov in Jakarta on Wednesday, where they discussed ways to strengthen defense cooperation between the two countries.

Sjafrie posted photos of the meeting on his official Instagram account.

The meeting aimed to strengthen diplomatic ties between Indonesia and Russia, according to a written statement accompanying Sjafrie's post, cited by ANTARA on Thursday.

"Indonesia-Russia bilateral relations and concrete steps to further strengthen defense cooperation were discussed," Sjafrie said in the Instagram post.

The ministry discussed various forms of military cooperation, including personnel exchanges, joint exercises, special forces training, and military medicine, Sjafrie said.

He did not provide details on when the joint activities would take place or how they would be implemented.

Still, Sjafrie said he was optimistic the defense cooperation would progress well, citing the countries' long history of friendly relations.

"Indonesia views Russia as an important partner in developing defense cooperation based on mutual respect, trust, shared interests, and respect for each country's sovereignty," Sjafrie said.