VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOInews, Jakarta: Member of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR), Fadli Zon strongly criticized the Israeli army for attacking Palestinian civilians. Fadli delivered his criticism at the world parliamentary session entitled the 148th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Geneva, Switzerland.

VOInews, Port Moresby: At least five people were killed and an estimated 1,000 homes destroyed when a magnitude 6.9 earthquake rocked flood-stricken northern Papua New Guinea, Governor of East Sepik, Allan Bird said on Monday (25/3/2024) as disaster crews poured into the region. Governor Bird added that emergency crews were "still assessing the impact" from a tremor that "damaged most parts of the province".

Fumio Kishida Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) delivers a speech during the party convention on Mar 17, 2024, in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo: Rodrigo Reyes Marin/Pool via REUTERS) - 

VOInews, Tokyo : Japan will work to strengthen its defence and diplomatic capabilities to maintain peace, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio said on Saturday (Mar 23), according to public broadcaster NHK, adding that military buildups around the country have been growing.

Japan is a close ally with the United States and has condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine, supporting Kyiv financially and joining international sanctions on Moscow.

"Military buildup, including nuclear and missile development, has been accelerating in areas surrounding Japan and attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force are growing," Kishida told a graduation ceremony at the National Defence Academy in Yokosuka near Tokyo, according to NHK.

Japan faces "the most complex and challenging" security environment since World War Two, and the government will strengthen its defence and diplomatic capabilities to maintain peace and to prevent security emergencies, he added.

Kishida and US President Joe Biden are to hold a summit on Apr 10 in the United States, aimed at boosting the longstanding bilateral security alliance in the face of growing Chinese influence and as North Korea continues its military tests//CNA-VOI

The Coordinating Minister for Maritime affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Panjaitan when giving the statement to the press (Photo : Setpres) - 

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan stated that the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) had approved the proposal of flight information region (FIR) takeover from Singapore to Indonesia.

"Singapore used to have control over the air space above the Riau and Natuna Islands at an altitude of 0-37 thousand feet," the minister remarked on Saturday.

Pandjaitan spoke of having received this report while undergoing health recovery in Singapore on January 11, 2024.

Furthermore, 60 days after the publication of information regarding these changes, the Indonesian airspace, which had earlier been designated as a Singapore FIR, completely returned as an Indonesian FIR.

With the official implementation of the transfer of the Singapore FIR to the Indonesian FIR, Pandjaitan stated that the government's policy regarding aviation services will make Indonesia's air space safer, more competitive, and attractive for the civil aviation industry.

"We hope that the management of Indonesian air space that is safe, effective, in line with national interests, and meets international civil aviation service standards can be achieved," he remarked.

Apart from the FIR agreement, he noted that the defense cooperation and fugitive extradition agreement between Indonesia and Singapore were also implemented.

"This is important, considering that those issues are bilateral issues that have not been resolved between the two countries for a long time," he remarked.

He stated that the diplomatic approach of Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Long facilitated the establishment of the agreement.

However, he reminded that the agreement should not put aside national interests.

Based on President Widodo's directions, Pandjaitan had also partaken in establishing sound communication with Singapore Senior Minister Teo Che Hean.

"All steps were taken to prioritize strengthening bilateral relations and respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the two countries," he emphasized//ANTARA-VOI