Australia — Indonesian Defense Minister and President-elect for the 2024-2029 term, Prabowo Subianto, was the subject of discussion in the Australian Parliament on Tuesday (20/8).

The first commendation came from Peter Dutton, the leader of the opposition in Australia, during his address in the forum where he expressed his admiration and impression of meeting Prabowo personally last year at the Ministry of Defense in Jakarta.

“I was fortunate to meet the now President-elect Prabowo, also the Defense Minister, in Jakarta a few years ago,” Peter revealed.

Peter noted that he saw Prabowo’s genuine desire to strengthen Indonesia-Australia cooperation that would benefit both nations not only in defense but also in other areas such as education.

“He (Prabowo) is sincerely interested in a relationship and friendship that clearly encompasses education, not just regarding defense but also national security. I welcome any opportunity that can be pursued together with the PM,” he added.

In a meeting between Prabowo and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday, Albanese reported in Parliament that the meeting was warm and close-knit.

Indonesia and Australia will also renew their cooperation in the form of the “Defence Cooperation Agreement” (DCA).

“Our partnership with Indonesia is vital for Australia. We will continue to strengthen relationships in economic partnerships, security, and Net Zero Emission Transition, and this morning we announced the completion of the RI-Australia defense cooperation negotiation. Let’s be clear, a few days ago the Deputy PM visited RI and signed this agreement, which will represent the most significant defense cooperation between Australia and our most important friend in Southeast Asia,” Anthony explained in Parliament.

After the meeting, in a press conference, Albanese acknowledged that the cooperative relationship between Indonesia and Australia has been longstanding and strong. Prabowo expressed his highest respect for this.

According to Prabowo, the friendship between Indonesia and Australia has been long-standing, and Australia was one of the first countries to support Indonesia’s struggle for independence in the 1940s.

“As we, the people of Indonesia, always remember, Australia was one of the countries that supported our independence struggle,” said Prabowo.

Prabowo is determined and optimistic that the friendship between Indonesia and Australia will continue to be strengthened.

“I am committed to continuing this good neighborly relationship. Of course, I will continue the general policies of President Joko Widodo where Australia plays a very important role for us in most areas, especially in the economic field,” Prabowo stated. (RR)