President Jokowi Welcomes Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at Bogor Palace

Jakarta, MINA – Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo received an official visit from New Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the Bogor Presidential Palace, West Java, Monday (June 6) morning.

Indonesia is the first country that Anthony Albanese has visited since serving as Prime Minister of Australia.

The car carrying PM Anthony Albanese arrived at the Bogor Presidential Palace at around 10:05 WIB. Arrival was accompanied by cavalry, troops in traditional dress, and the marching band the Presidential Security Forces.

Arriving at the front yard of the Bogor Presidential Palace, the Australian PM was directly greeted by President Joko Widodo. The procession was then followed by an official welcoming ceremony by singing the national anthem Australia Advance Australia Fair and the national anthem Indonesia Indonesia Raya accompanied by the banging of cannons 19 times, and an inspection of the ranks of honor.

The leaders of the two countries then introduced their respective delegations. From Indonesia, the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi, Minister of Trade Muhammad Lutfi, Minister of State Secretary Pratikno, Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, Indonesian Ambassador to Australia and Vanuatu Siswo Pramono, and Director General of Asia Pacific and Africa, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Abdul Kadir Jailani.

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Meanwhile, the delegates who attended from Australia included Minister of Foreign Affairs Penny Wong, Minister of Trade and Tourism Don Farrell, Minister of Industry and Science Ed Husic, Solomon member Luke Gosling OAM, and Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Penny Williams.

The two leaders planted a tree together in the backyard of the Palace. The tree planted is the Camphor Tree.

The two state leaders then cycled together to Resto Raasaa which is located in the Bogor Botanical Gardens area. The bicycles used by the two leaders are made of bamboo.

President Jokowi’s Bamboo Bike Diplomacy

There was something interesting in the series of official welcoming of PM Anthony Albanese, at the Bogor Presidential Palace. After carrying out tree planting activities, President Jokowi invited PM Albanese for a morning bike ride.

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From the Bogor Presidential Palace, the two leaders rode bamboo bicycles to the Raasaa Resto located in the Bogor Botanical Gardens. Apart from the very friendly weather for cycling in the morning, President Jokowi said that bicycles are also an environmentally friendly vehicle mode.

“Since the weather is nice and riding a bicycle is environmentally friendly, I think we should start conveying the message of the importance of environmentally friendly vehicles. Then the third, this is the route I usually use for sports,” said President Jokowi in his statement at Resto Raasaa, Bogor Botanical Gardens.

Meanwhile, PM Albanese admitted that the cycling experience was an extraordinary experience and considered it a great honor.

“Good morning, it was a wonderful experience and I consider it a great honor that the President invited me to ride his bamboo bike with him to this beautiful place in the botanical garden,” said PM Albanese.

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PM Albanese views that the cycling activity also shows the friendship between Australia and Indonesia. According to him, President Jokowi even offered to bring his bamboo bicycle to Australia.

“The president has offered to take me back to Australia and you will see me riding the only bamboo bike in Canberra. But it was an amazing experience and every time I ride a bike, I will remember the friendship with President Widodo,” he said.

President Jokowi and PM Albanese use a bamboo bicycle designed for use on the road. The bicycle is the work of Singgih S. Kartono from Temanggung Regency, Central Java Province.

After cycling, the two leaders then held a tete-a-tete talk in the white stone garden area of Resto Raasaa, Bogor Botanical Gardens. For about 30 minutes, the two of them had a warm conversation before returning to the Bogor Presidential Palace by using a golf cart to hold a bilateral meeting between the two countries. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)