VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOI, Jakarta - Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi discussed cooperation in a number of sectors, including green investment, with Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot during a bilateral meeting here on Tuesday.

In a joint press conference after the meeting, Marsudi said that the Netherlands is the largest European investor in Indonesia, which has invested more than US$15.5 billion since 2013, with an annual average increase of 15.8 percent.

The Netherlands has also been one of the European countries committed to supporting the energy transition in Indonesia, she noted.

"And in the future, Indonesia hopes to strengthen cooperation (with the Netherlands) to develop the semiconductor industry ecosystem in Indonesia," she added.

Marsudi praised the Dutch government's commitment to supporting the energy transition, promoting sustainability, and strengthening cooperation in developing sustainable ports, the shipbuilding industry, as well as solar and wind power plants in Indonesia.

At the press conference, the minister also announced the 2024–2025 action plan for a comprehensive partnership between Indonesia and the Netherlands.

This action plan will serve as a road map for the continuation of partnership and collaboration between the two countries.

Meanwhile, Minister Slot said that the Netherlands has proposed an investment grant of 105 million euros to support sustainable development in Indonesia.

The grant is part of a €300 million cooperation program between the Dutch and Indonesian governments in partnership with Dutch financial institution Invest International.

Slot informed that the program includes loans that will support sustainable and inclusive initiatives in sectors relevant to Dutch expertise, such as climate and energy, agriculture and food, healthcare, water, and infrastructure.

According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), the Netherlands' investment in Indonesia reached US$1.22 billion in 2022.

Dutch investment in Indonesia includes the Frisian Flag dairy factory in East Java and a terminal in Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta.(Antaranews)

VOI, Jakarta - Indonesia on Monday established data and cybersecurity cooperation with Lithuania to improve digital infrastructure.

Indonesia is open to discussing potential cooperation considering Lithuania's superiority in digital infrastructure, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said.

"The Indonesian government wants to develop cooperation in data protection and copyright," he informed in a statement released here on Tuesday.

One of Indonesia's focuses under the collaboration is ensuring zero blank spots on all islands in Indonesia. To achieve this, the digital sector needs to be strengthened through collaboration with other countries.

Blank spots are areas that have no signal due to the absence of telecommunications towers.

Hartarto also expressed the hope that Lithuania would support Indonesia's accession to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), including by sharing experiences with Indonesia.

Lithuanian Foreign Affairs Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that Lithuania is ready to support Indonesia's bid to become an OECD member.

"The Lithuanian government is ready to support Indonesia to fulfill all accession requirements as an OECD member. We are ready to help carry out training, send experts, and form a consultation group with Indonesia," said Minister Landsbergis.

Lithuania also expressed interest in collaborating with Indonesia in the dairy sector. The Lithuanian dairy company is ready to fulfill the requirements that apply in Indonesia, he said.

The two ministers also discussed efforts to accelerate the completion of the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Partnership Agreement (IEU CEPA) negotiations, which are currently still on.

Indonesia and Lithuania believe that the IEU CEPA agreement can encourage improved economic relations between Indonesia and the European Union.

Minister Landsbergis also conveyed the plan of the Lithuanian industrialists association to forge cooperation with the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).

"The signing of the agreement will be a good start for both parties to increase economic cooperation in the future," he said.(Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - Pakistan set a Nov. 1 deadline for all foreigners without legal documents, including more than a million Afghans, to leave the country or face forcible expulsion.

Here are key facts about Islamabad's plan to deport hundreds of thousands back to its western neighbour Afghanistan:

- Pakistan announced the Wednesday deadline on Oct. 3, giving more than a million people about four weeks to move.

- The sudden expulsion threat came after suicide bombings this year that the government said involved Afghans, though without providing evidence. Islamabad has also blamed them for smuggling and other militant attacks as well as petty crimes.

- Islamabad says Afghan nationals were found to be involved in attacks against government and the army, including 14 of this year's 24 suicide bombings.

- Pakistan is home to more than 4 million Afghan migrants and refugees, about 1.7 million of them undocumented, according to Islamabad, although many have lived in Pakistan for their entire lives.

- About 600,000 Afghans have crossed into Pakistan since the Taliban took over in 2021, joining a large number present since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and the ensuing civil wars.

- More than 60,000 Afghans returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan between Sept. 23 and Oct. 22, ahead of the deadline, with thousands more expected to have been on the move last week.

- Islamabad says deportation will be orderly, carried out in phases and start with those who have criminal records. Authorities have vowed raids in areas suspected of housing "undocumented foreigners" after Wednesday.

- Authorities have set up "holding centres" to process deportees before they return to Afghanistan. Reuters could not determine how long they might be detained in the centres. (Reuters)

VOINews, Jakarta - Thailand will waive visa requirements for arrivals from India and Taiwan from next month to May 2024, a government official said on Tuesday, in a bid to draw in more tourists as high season approaches.

Thailand in September scrapped visa requirements for Chinese tourists, the country's top pre-pandemic tourism market with 11 million of the record 39 million arrivals in 2019.

From January to October 29, there were 22 million visitors to Thailand, generating 927.5 billion baht ($25.67 billion), according to the latest government data.

"Arrivals from India and Taiwan can enter Thailand for 30 days," spokesperson Chai Wacharonke said.

India has been Thailand's fourth largest source market for tourism so far this year with about 1.2 million arrivals after Malaysia, China and South Korea.

Inbound tourism from India showed signs of growth as more airlines and hospitality chains targeted that market.

Thailand is targeting about 28 million arrivals this year, with the new government hoping the travel sector can offset continued weak exports that have constrained economic growth.

($1 = 36.1300 baht) (Reuters)