Notícias
Press statement by Minister Mauro Vieira after bilateral meeting with Indonesia's Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi (Jakarta, October 9, 2023)
At the meeting with Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, we discussed the state of our bilateral relations, especially our Strategic Partnership that dates back to 2008 and is the only one Brazil maintains in Southeast Asia. We decided to relaunch our Strategic Partnership, by adopting a Plan of Action to be implemented along the next three years.
The new Plan of Action will guide our bilateral cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, renewable energy, sustainable development, health, science, technology, and innovation.
In the field of bioenergy cooperation, I had the honor to take part at the opening session of the seminar “Ethanol Talks – Sustainable Mobility”, earlier this morning, organized by the Brazilian private sector. I am glad the event attracted the interest of Indonesian authorities, policymakers, industry representatives and specialists. It is a sign of our commitment to cooperating with Indonesia in energy transition, taking advantage of our long experience in the use of biofuels in Brazil.
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and I went through the state of our bilateral trade and the flow of investments between our countries. I highlighted the Brazilian interest in supporting food security in Indonesia as a reliable supplier of food stocks. I highlighted the potential Brazil offers to expand exports of meat to feed the Indonesian market.
I am sure our countries will benefit from an enlarged cooperation in the area of defense. We agreed that the First Brazil-Indonesia Political-Military Dialogue will be held next year in Brazil.
We also agreed that Science, Technology and Innovation should be at a center stage in our bilateral relations. We need to work together to determine the best areas and ways to cooperate. Both countries may surely benefit from each other’s knowledge and expertise in many scientific and technological domains.
As Indonesia builds its new capital, Nusantara, I expressed Brazil´s readiness to cooperate by sharing our experience in the construction of Brasilia and the relocation of our capital in the 1960s.
We agreed that the Global South should work closer to bring their interests and needs to the heart of the international agenda. In this sense, Brazil has set three priorities for our G20 presidency next year: social inclusion and the fight against hunger and inequality; sustainable development; and the reform of the global governance institutions.
I commend the active leadership played by Indonesia in the G20 Presidency in 2022. Brazil will start its Presidency soon. We wish to build upon the extraordinary work done by our friends Indonesia, in 2022, and India, in 2023.
We value our joint work with Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo in our Trilateral Alliance on Tropical Forests and Climate Action. Our countries have a leading voice on the topic as partners in the interest of environmental preservation and in facing the climate crisis.
This morning, under the Presidency of Indonesia, Brazil also held its First Trilateral Dialogue with ASEAN, with the presence of Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and Secretary-General of ASEAN Kao Kim Hourn.
Brazil is very much looking forward for deepening cooperation with ASEAN in light of the Sectorial Dialogue Partnership recently established. We are aware of the economic advancements of Southeast Asia in the last decades. Brazil is ready to strengthen its relations and to foster cooperation with the region and with each of its member states.
To conclude, I also exchanged views with Minister Marsudi on the current developments in Israel and Palestine. I reteirated Brazil’s condemnation of the attacks against Israel and its condolences to the victims. All parties should immediately stop the violence and exercise maximum restraint in order to avoid further escalating the situation. Under the Brazilian presidency of the United Nations Security Council, we will redouble multilateral efforts to contain the spiral of violence and unblock the peace process. The current dynamics between Israel and Palestine are unsustainable and a solution is needed to this situation, with Palestine and Israel living together in peace and security, within mutually agreed and internationally recognized borders.
Thank you.