St. Petersburg — Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday (June 19) to explore deeper bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Russia. The high-level meeting took on added significance following Indonesia’s formal accession as a full member of BRICS on January 6, 2025.

“I am very grateful that Russia supported Indonesia’s full BRICS membership in such a short time,” Prabowo said during the meeting in St. Petersburg.

Putin welcomed Indonesia’s entry into the group of emerging economies and expressed optimism about Indonesia’s future role in shaping the organization’s agenda.

“Indonesia is now a full BRICS member, and I hope it will make a significant contribution to the group’s activities. We are very pleased to meet you here, Mr. President. Welcome,” Putin stated.

Prabowo noted that economic relations between the two countries have continued to grow, with increasing engagement across a broadening range of sectors.

“Our relations continue to improve. I’ve been following a lot of developments and progress in various fields. Our economy is strengthening, and our cooperation and agreements are expanding,” he said.

Putin echoed that sentiment, emphasizing that the cordial bilateral talks paved the way for enhanced collaboration in key strategic areas, including agriculture, energy, and defense.

“There are many promising opportunities across sectors—agriculture, space exploration, energy, and military-technical cooperation. There’s great potential to deepen our partnership, and still much room for growth,” Putin added.

The meeting underscored the evolving strategic alignment between Jakarta and Moscow, as both nations seek to expand their global influence and cooperation under the BRICS framework.