India’s prime minister Narendra Modi met with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto on Saturday as the two countries signed a series of cooperation agreements on various sectors including maritime safety and security, trade and energy to expand ties.
At the invitation of the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, president of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto paid a state visit to India from 23-26 January 2025. This was the first visit of president Prabowo to India in his current capacity as president and coincided with the 75th anniversary of India-Indonesia diplomatic relations.
Modi said the two leaders decided to work together in defence manufacturing and supply chain sectors, heightening cooperation in maritime and cyber security.
Both leaders welcomed the renewal of the MoU on maritime safety and security cooperation which signifies commitment to continue cooperating in preventing and responding to acts of crime at sea, coordinating search and rescue operation upon request, and capacity building activities.
“The agreement signed today in maritime safety and security will strengthen our cooperation in the areas of crime prevention, search and rescue, and capacity building. Over the past few years, our bilateral trade has grown rapidly, and last year, this exceeded US$30 billion,” he added.
India’s prime minister Modi described Indonesia as an “important partner” in the ASEAN and Indo-Pacific region, noting that both countries are committed to a rules-based order in the region.
Both leaders reaffirmed the importance of maintaining and promoting peace, stability, maritime safety and security, and freedom of navigation in the region.
“We agree that the freedom of navigation should be ensured in line with international law,” the prime minister said.
India-Indonesia bilateral ties were elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership when prime minister Modi paid an official visit to Indonesia in 2018. During that visit, both parties held extensive discussions on various aspects of cooperation with emphasis on cooperation in maritime security.
The two leaders reaffirmed that India and Indonesia as maritime neighbours and strategic partners must continue to work to further deepen and broaden the defence cooperation.
