At a news conference on March 16, President of Indonesia Joko Widodo, often known as Jokowi, stated that Asean must continue to serve as the "engine for peace" in Southeast Asia.
Jokowi spoke in the Istana after attending the Sixth Singapore-Indonesia Leaders' Retreat, which was hosted in Singapore this year.
The retreat, which was last conducted in Batam in 2022, was the most recent in a series of yearly gatherings when the leaders and ministers of the two nations meet to address bilateral and regional concerns.
After the meeting, Lee and Jokowi held a joint news conference.
PM Lee underlined Singapore's unwavering support for Indonesia's Asean chairmanship and Indonesia's goals as Asean chair, as well as praising Indonesia's 2022 G20 leadership.
Both PM Lee and PM Jokowi lamented the lack of progress in the Asean Five-Point Consensus (5PC).
Singapore will continue to collaborate with Indonesia and other Asean countries and partners to "push for the full implementation of the 5PC."
The 5PC is a set of measures to address the political situation that has persisted in Myanmar since the military conducted a coup in 2021, overthrowing Aung San Suu Kyi's democratically elected government.
Major players, including Asean and the Myanmar military government, reached a deal, but the latter has thus far refused to fulfill its obligations.
Prior to his arrival in Singapore, Jokowi told the Straits Times that the 5PC was a top priority for Indonesia and Asean.
In addition, he stated that a great deal of effort had been done behind the scenes, but that while Indonesia would try its best to ameliorate the situation in Myanmar, the issue was difficult and a settlement would take time.
PM Lee also reaffirmed Singapore's support for Timor Leste's Asean membership, stating that Singapore will "do its share to assist Timor Leste in preparing for the duties and commitments it would assume upon joining Asean."
As Asean head, Jokowi stated that ensuring the bloc's continued significance and relevance for its people and the global community was his top concern.
He explained that his aims were to "guarantee the stability and centrality of Asean" and for Asean to "remain the engine of peace" in the region, as well as for Southeast Asia to remain a growth hub.
Jokowi also highlighted the Memoranda of Understanding struck between the two governments and industries.
He emphasized the 20 letters of intent from Singapore's corporate sector to invest in the national capital city of Nusantara, as well as the nine business-to-business and seven government-to-government MoUs inked in the domains of healthcare, digital technology, and renewable energy.
PM Lee and Jokowi also hailed the approval of the three enlarged framework agreements that were reached during the 2022 Leaders Retreat.
They stated that both nations will submit a combined application to the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) for adoption of the new Flight Information Region (FIR) agreement.
The last two accords were the Extradition Treaty and the Defense Cooperation Agreement.
After obtaining permission for the FIR, both nations would go forward to simultaneously implement all three accords.
The leaders also observed the exchanging of six memorandums of understanding, including one creating the Singapore-Indonesia Tech: X Programme, which allows young tech workers from both countries to work for up to a year in the other country.
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