Indonesia’s SBY arriving for WEF

MANILA, Philippines - Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will make a state visit to the Philippines on May 22-23 upon the invitation of President Aquino.

Yudhoyono will be attending tomorrow’s World Economic Forum on East Asia (WEF-EA) where he will be conferred the Global Statesmanship Award.

He will witness the official turnover to Indonesia of the hosting of the 24th WEF-EA in 2015.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Yudhoyono will meet with Aquino on Friday to discuss matters of mutual concern, including political, defense and border, maritime, economic and socio-cultural cooperation.

He will also be conferred with the Order of Sikatuna with rank of Rajah during the state dinner to be hosted in his honor.

This will be Yudhoyono’s first bilateral visit to the Philippines since he became Indonesia’s President for two consecutive terms in 2004 and 2009.

Indonesia was the 13th major trading partner of the Philippines in 2013, with a total trade of $3.512 billion. There is a 9,844-strong Filipino community living and working in Indonesia.

The Philippines and Indonesia have completed talks for the delimitation of the overlapping exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in the Mindanao Sea and Celebes Sea.

The two archipelagoes finalized the text of an agreement and the chart on the EEZ boundary after 20 years of negotiations to find an equitable solution to their overlapping claims.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Evan Garcia, head of the Philippine delegation, and Wiwiek Setyawati Firman, acting director general for legal affairs and international treaties in the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, endorsed for signing the “Agreement between the Republic of the Philippines and the Republic of Indonesia Concerning the Delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone Boundary.”

This year marks the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.