MoS Pabitra Margherita attends Indonesian President’s inauguration

JAKARTA, Oct 20 : Minister of State for External Affairs, Pabitra Margherita, on Sunday attended the inauguration ceremony of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka at the Parliament complex in Jakarta.

Margherita conveyed warm greetings to President Prabowo on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a press release.

“President Prabowo conveyed his gratitude to Prime Minister Modi for his wishes,” it said.

Prabowo, 73, was inaugurated as the eighth president of Indonesia. He was the former defence minister of the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

As part of his visit to Jakarta, Margherita also held discussions with CEOs of leading Indian companies operating in Indonesia, reinforcing India’s engagement with its comprehensive strategic partner, the MEA said.

The visit reaffirms India’s strong commitment to its relations with Indonesia, a close maritime neighbour and strategic partner in the region, it said.

Ahead of Margherita’s two-day visit to Jakarta from Oct 19 to Oct 20 to attend the inauguration ceremony, the MEA in a press release said that 2024 is an important year as both countries are commemorating 75 years of establishment of diplomatic relations and it also marks a decade of India’s ‘Act East’ policy of which Indonesia is an important pillar.

Participation of the MoS in the inauguration ceremony “reaffirms our commitment to further strengthening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and Indonesia,” it said. (PTI)