Addressing a joint news conference with Indonesian President Prabawo Subianto in Indonesia’s Bogor on Wednesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reiterated his criticism of Israel over its attacks on Palestine.
Erdoğan said they would work with Indonesia in the reconstruction of Gaza once peace prevailed in the Palestinian enclave. “Establishment of State of Palestine with the 1967 borders and East Jerusalem as its capital cannot be postponed any more,” Erdoğan said.
“Without Gaza having its peace, regional countries cannot have peace,” he added.
The president lauded Indonesia's stance on the Palestinian issue and said they would continue working with Indonesia to defend the Palestinian cause. He reiterated his remarks on Tuesday about the Palestine-Israel conflict and said the State of Palestine should be established in the face of steps "to erode it."
"Every proposal, every project aiming to delay it is illegitimate," he said, in an apparent reference to U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks that called for relocation of Palestinians from Gaza to third countries.
"It will bring only more conflict, bloodshed and instability," he said.
Erdoğan highlighted that Israel's 15 months of attacks on Palestine left a cost amounting to about $100 billion. "Remember, the principle of law is collecting the cost of damage from whoever inflicted it," he said, urging the Israeli administration to pay the compensation for the damage.
Erdoğan formally began his visit to Indonesia after an official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Bogor by President Subianto on Wednesday. Erdoğan arrived in the country late Tuesday from Malaysia. Like in Malaysia, the Turkish president was welcomed by a cheering public waving Turkish and Indonesian flags as he headed to his hotel from the airport.
Erdoğan and Subianto chaired a Turkish-Indonesian High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council meeting and oversaw the signing of deals between the two countries before their joint news conference. He was also scheduled to attend a Turkish-Indonesian business forum.
The president is accompanied by a delegation of ministers, high-ranking officials and representatives of the Turkish defense industry. The two countries are holding their first High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) summit after agreeing to create the forum at a meeting in Bali in 2022. Erdoğan’s state visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country and Southeast Asia's largest economy, was his second stop in his Asia tour that began in Malaysia and will end in Pakistan.
At the news conference, Erdoğan said they discussed with his Indonesian counterpart efforts to raise bilateral commerce volume to $10 billion in a balanced way. Thanking Subianto for sincere hospitality, Erdoğan hailed ties dating back 400 years ago.
"We crowned these strong ties with the declaration of Strategic Partnership in 2011. Our council meeting today made our relations more institutional," he stated. He said that apart from discussions on bilateral relations, they exchanged views on global and regional matters, particularly the situation in Palestine and Syria.
"We reviewed opportunities for additional cooperation in the defense industry. We also emphasize diversifying our economic relations in other fields, including health care, construction, energy, food and halal products. We particularly desire Turkish companies, which had success in international projects, to participate in constructing Indonesia's future capital, Nusantara," he said.
The capital project, an initiative of former President Joko Widodo, seeks to move Indonesia's seat of power about 1,200 kilometers (745 miles) away from sinking and congested Jakarta to Nusantara, located in a jungle of Borneo island. Key government buildings, like the presidential palace and some state officials housing, were recently completed, while toll road and airport construction are underway. The government had agreed that only a fifth of the total budget would come from the state. Last year, it received its first foreign investment when Chinese property firm Delonix Group invested 500 billion rupiah ($31.80 million) to build hotels and offices.
Erdoğan said Türkiye and Indonesia were two countries earning from tourism, and ties between people in the two countries should be strengthened. "We emphasized the need to increase the number of flights between two countries by our flag carriers. Last year, 203,000 Indonesian tourists visited Türkiye and about 50,000 Turkish tourists visited Indonesia. These are good figures but below our potential," Erdoğan said.
Speaking at the news conference, President Subianto said their relations with Türkiye had strong roots dating back centuries to the time of the Ottoman Empire. He noted that Erdoğan’s visit came at the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.
Türkiye and Indonesia trace their relations back to the 16th century when the Sultanate of Aceh sought Ottoman assistance against the Portuguese. In the 20th century, Türkiye became one of the first countries to recognize Indonesia’s independence and opened its embassy in Jakarta in 1957. Erdoğan first visited Indonesia in 2005 while he was prime minister, in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami disaster. In 2017, outgoing President Joko Widodo paid a state visit to Türkiye, where the two countries signed two major agreements for cooperation. Since then, relations have strengthened. The two countries are partners in a number of international bodies, from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to the MIKTA grouping of countries that also includes Mexico, South Korea and Australia.
Indonesia is also one of the founding members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); since 2017, Türkiye has been a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN.
Subianto said relations between their two countries reached their highest level and expressed determination to cement the partnership between Indonesia and Türkiye further.
Citing their goals for cooperation in commerce, Subianto said they also wanted to strengthen cooperation in the defense industry. He noted Indonesia’s desire for cooperation on military training and intelligence, adding they also made decisions to heighten collaboration in the health sector.
He stated that their cooperation for the welfare of Palestine would also continue and reiterated Indonesia’s support for a two-state solution to the Palestine-Israel conflict.
Subianto hailed the importance of Erdoğan’s visit, and it paved the way for marking a turning point in the Turkish-Indonesian partnership.
Türkiye and Indonesia signed 13 deals in a ceremony attended by leaders. Ministers and senior officials from both countries signed the agreements on cooperation in health care, energy and natural resources, facilitation of investment processes, industrial cooperation, agricultural cooperation, commercial cooperation, as well as cooperation in higher education, religious education and defense cooperation.
Baykar, Türkiye’s leading uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) producer, signed an agreement with Indonesia’s leading defense company Republikorp for export of Bayraktar TB3 and Bayraktar Akıncı drones, a top choice for countries seeking acquisition of Turkish-made defense products. Türkiye’s public news agency Anadolu Agency (AA) and Indonesian news agency Antara also signed a cooperation agreement, while public broadcaster TRT signed a cooperation deal with Indonesia’s LPP RRI.
Erdoğan hailed the increasing interest of Indonesian youth in Türkiye’s scholarship programs. "We see each of the nearly 5,000 Indonesian brothers and sisters who have studied in our country as cultural ambassadors. The Yunus Emre Institute, the Turkish Maarif Foundation and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) will continue to contribute to our cooperation in these areas," he said.
He emphasized their determination to enhance relations with ASEAN and its members, stating that they trust Indonesia, which hosts the ASEAN secretariat, to support Türkiye’s efforts to strengthen cooperation with ASEAN.
He also noted that during their discussions, they agreed to increase engagement in multilateral platforms such as the United Nations, the G-20, MIKTA, the D-8 and the OIC.
The two leaders later issued a 64-article joint declaration, published by the Turkish Presidency's Directorate of Communications. Both leaders acknowledged the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between their nations, marking the occasion with the theme “Partnership for People; Partnership for the New World.” They expressed their commitment to strengthening cooperation between Türkiye and Indonesia for the benefit of their people and the world at large.
The leaders also agreed that the 75th anniversary of their diplomatic ties would be a milestone for their bilateral relations, paving the way for a century-long partnership by 2050. They decided to further develop partnerships in trade, the defense industry, health care, energy, infrastructure and technical cooperation by 2025.
The leaders agreed to enhance intergovernmental cooperation in education, scholarships, language learning, cultural exchange and tourism to strengthen people-to-people ties. They also confirmed their joint leadership of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, established in 2022, to guide priority sectors, including political, trade and investment, defense, security, socio-cultural and consular issues.
During the council meeting, the two leaders engaged in deep discussions on bilateral relations and common global and regional issues, resulting in significant mutual understandings on a wide range of topics. In the areas of economy, trade and investment, the leaders affirmed their commitment to achieving the $10 billion trade target, with a phased approach to establishing preferential trade agreements and ultimately working toward a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
They emphasized the importance of increased cooperation and exchanges between trade and economic officials from both countries to facilitate greater trade flows and closer economic ties. The leaders highlighted the significance of the Economic and Technical Cooperation Joint Commission (KEK) and agreed to ensure more effective involvement from the private sector in promoting bilateral trade and economic collaboration.
They also expressed their desire to strengthen agricultural cooperation through technical meetings, visits and training programs. In terms of defense and defense industry cooperation, the leaders underscored the strategic importance of collaboration in strengthening national defense, increasing defense industry autonomy and contributing to global peace and stability. They agreed to develop a road map for expanding defense industry collaboration, including establishing joint ventures and representative offices for leading Turkish defense companies in Indonesia.
Regarding energy cooperation, the leaders reiterated their commitment to fostering innovation in clean energy technologies and enhancing energy security. They emphasized the critical role of clean energy in creating a more sustainable future and highlighted cooperation in geothermal energy and other renewable sources.
The leaders also emphasized the need for cooperation in infrastructure, agreeing to establish an Indonesia-Türkiye Infrastructure Forum to discuss potential collaborations. They called for the planning and implementation of joint projects in this area.
Additionally, both leaders expressed their support for strengthening academic and educational partnerships, with a focus on science, technology, engineering and medicine. They also agreed to encourage cultural exchanges and joint initiatives, including collaborations on protecting and digitalizing cultural heritage.
On global security, the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to supporting the sovereignty and independence of Palestine. They called for a cease-fire in Gaza, aligned with a two-state solution for the Israel-Palestine conflict, and condemned the violence and humanitarian crisis in the region. They also called for international cooperation to address global challenges such as organized crime, terrorism and regional security threats.
Finally, both leaders agreed to collaborate on creating a fairer global economic order, supporting sustainable development and advocating for the rights of developing countries to industrialize and benefit from international resources.
