Indonesian president to visit Philippines

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo will be on a three-day state visit to the Philippines this coming week upon the invitation of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said today.

Widodo's state visit on Feb. 8 to 10 will be his first to the country, the department said.

"In the spirit of ASEAN solidarity, it is tradition on the part of a new head of state to immediately conduct introductory visits to fellow ASEAN Member States," the DFA said.

Widodo assumed the presidency of the Republic of Indonesia in October last year.

He is currently on a three-country swing, which has taken him on state visits to Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam, with the Philippines being his final stop.

The DFA said that Widodo and Aquino are expected to discuss matters of mutual concern, including migrant workers issues, maritime cooperation, defense, trade and investment, and people-to- people exchanges, among others.

Indonesia was the Philippines' 11th largest trade partner in 2013, with total trade amounting to 3.62 billion U.S. dollars.