TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo or Jokowi visits Vietnam today, Friday, January 12, 2024. The president will hold several meetings with Vietnamese political leaders.

The presidential aircraft Indonesia-1 carried Jokowi and his entourage to the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, Vietnam on Thursday, Jan. 11 at around 02:45 p.m. local time.

"In Hanoi, President Jokowi is scheduled to meet several Vietnamese leaders, namely President Võ Vn Thng, Prime Minister Phm Minh Chính, Chairman of National Assembly Vng ình Hu," the presidential palace explained on Thursday evening.

Until 08:30 a.m., no official statement has been released by the presidential secretariat press bureau on the details of Jokowi's agenda in Vietnam today.

Jokowi's previous visit to the Philippines

During his visit to the Philippines, Jokowi attended several events, one of which was his meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the Malacanang Palace in Manila on Wednesday.

Yesterday, Jokowi also welcomed two visits from Minister of Transportation Jaime Bautista and Minister of Defense Gilberto Eduardo Gerardo C. Teodoro Jr. In his meeting with the Minister of Transportation, Jokowi expressed his appreciation and trust toward the Philippines Department of Transportation for Indonesia's state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

"We ought to be grateful to our SOEs, PT PP (Housing Development) and PT Adhi Karya for their success in inking two Rp8.5 trillion-worth cooperation agreements through auctions," Jokowi said.

Meanwhile, during his meeting with the Defense Minister, Jokowi claimed that the Philippines appreciated and was satisfied with Indonesia's defense industrial products.

"I hope this could be developed not only in the Philippines but also in other countries," he said, quoted from a virtual statement.

Aside from Vietnam and the Philippines, Jokowi is also slated to visit Brunei Darussalam to attend Abdul Mateen, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah's 10th son's marriage.

DANIEL A. FAJRI