Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan here on Saturday to discuss defense cooperation between the two countries.
During the meeting, Subianto and Fidan talked about the bilateral relations between Indonesia and Turkey, including cooperation in the field of defense.
Minister Subianto said that Turkey is an important friendly country for Indonesia. The two have enjoyed long-standing cooperation in the field of defense.
"I see there are still many rooms in the defense field that can be utilized by both countries in the future," he added.
According to the minister, bilateral cooperation must be enhanced to build mutual trust, the capacity of armed forces, and the defense industry of both countries.
Indonesia and Turkey have strong defense cooperation, with a defense industry agreement signed in 2010, he noted.
There is also the Indonesia-Turkey Defense Dialogue Meeting that was instituted in 2020.
"Both countries also have cooperation in research and development in the defense field," he highlighted.
The R&D collaboration in the defense field has included, among others, the development of defense radio software between Turkey's Aselsan and Indonesia's PT Wellracom Megahjaya and PT LEN.
Further, Turkey's FNSS and Indonesia's state weapons manufacturer PT Pindad are also pursuing R&D cooperation in infantry fighting vehicles (IFV).
Earlier in February, Minister Subianto and former Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar signed a defense cooperation action plan in Bakanliklar, Ankara.
"We have just signed a very historic and important pact, namely an action plan, which is a follow-up to the strategic cooperation relationship between the two countries," Subianto explained.
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), on the sidelines of the G20 Summit last year in Bali, held a bilateral talk with the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
During the meeting, they talked about progress in bilateral relations between the two countries with the signing of a number of strategic agreements, including government-to-government (G2G) cooperation in defense.
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