Turkey and Indonesia Agree to Support Palestinian Independence

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, have reached an agreement to jointly support the Palestinian people in their struggle for independence.

This agreement was reached during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Saturday, according to a statement from Jokowi's office on Sunday, November 12, 2023.

"We also agreed to remind the world of the urgency to resolve the root cause of the problems by realizing a two-state solution," Jokowi remarked.

He urged member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to unite and make utmost efforts to press for a ceasefire and humanitarian pauses for Palestinian people in Gaza, currently under the siege of Israeli forces.

"And ensure safe, predictable, and sustainable access to humanitarian aid for all people (in the enclave)," he stated.

Jokowi affirmed that Indonesia would use all available channels, including the UN General Assembly, UN Human Rights Council, and International Criminal Court, to voice justice and humanity for the people of Palestine.

During the bilateral meeting, Jokowi and Erdogan conveyed their commitment to directing their countries to collaborate in resolving the problems in Gaza, supporting Palestinians in their struggle for independence, and realizing an independent state of Palestine.

Both leaders also stated that Indonesia and Turkey continue to actively contribute to handling issues in the Gaza Strip, currently under shelling by Israeli forces.

In addition to discussing the recent conditions in Gaza, the two leaders also used their meeting to push for accelerating negotiations on the finalization of the Indonesia-Turkey Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IT-CEPA).

The two countries expect the IT-CEPA to be finalized next year.

Jokowi was accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi during his meeting with Erdogan.

ANTARA

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