Indonesia’s President-elect and incumbent Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto met Indian Ambassador in Jakarta Sandeep Chakravorty in the Indonesian capital on Wednesday, according to a statement by the Indonesian Defence Ministry.
“Minister of Defense Prabowo also revealed that maintaining the harmony of bilateral relations and cooperation between Indonesia and India is a priority, and hopes to have further discussions to discuss efforts to strengthen mutually beneficial bilateral relations between the two countries,” a readout of the meeting said.
The incoming President also said that he was encouraged by the “constructive discussions” and “prospects for future collaboration” between the two countries during the 7th India-Indonesia Joint Defence Cooperation Committee meeting in New Delhi last week.
"It is through collaborative efforts like this that we can continue to strengthen friendship and achieve mutual prosperity", Prabowo said.
Prabowo also backed the prospect of growing defence cooperation between the two countries, amid reports that the new leader has expressed interest in purchasing the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from India once he is sworn-in as the new President in October.
At the bilateral defence meeting in New Delhi, both the countries identified means to bolster ties in the realm of defence industry ties, maritime security and multilateral cooperation, according to an Indian statement.
The high-level meeting was co-chaired by Indian Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Air Marshal Donny Ermawan Taufanto, the Secretary General of Indonesia's Ministry of Defence.
At the sidelines of the India-Indonesia meeting, BrahMos Aerospace's Chief Executive Officer Atul Dinakar Rane called on Taufanto to discuss "future defence collaboration" between the two countries.