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Sunday, August 19, 2012

Pakistan, Indonesia committed to furthering ties: envoy

ISLAMABAD: To mark the 67th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Indonesia, the country’s Ambassador Ishak Latuconsina and Butar Latuconsina hosted a reception at the Serena Hotel on Friday. Government dignitaries, diplomats, Pakistani military officers, business community, politicians and representatives from the civil society attended the reception and congratulated the hosts on the auspicious occasion.
Adviser to Prime Minister on National Harmony Dr Paul Jacob Bhatti was the chief guest on the occasion.
The Indonesian envoy also extended his warmest greetings to the government and the people of Pakistan on the 66th Independence Day celebrated on August 14.
The official programme started with the playing of national anthems of both the countries before the ambassador of Indonesia and the chief guest Bhatti joined by the ASEAN heads of missions performed the cake cutting to mark the day.
The venue was beautifully decorated with flower arrangements depicting Indonesian and Pakistani flags. Documentaries were also screened for the interest of the guests providing general but interesting information about Indonesia.
Dr Paul Jacob Bhatti and Ambassador Ishak Latuconsina noted with satisfaction that Indonesia and Pakistan were committed to bolstering cooperation in various avenues to further expand existing excellent bilateral relations.
They underlined the importance of close ties and enhancing people-to-people networks and encouraging all-around cooperation to further strengthen the fraternal bond between the two nations.
Speaking to the media on the occasion, Latuconsina expressed his great satisfaction over the sound diplomatic relations between the two countries. He said Indonesia has always remained a staunch supporter of Pakistan’s efforts to become the full dialogue partner of ASEAN to develop meaningful partnerships with the ASEAN countries individually and collectively.
The envoy said that the friendship between the two countries has now transformed into a multi-faceted, mutually rewarding partnership encompassing all fields of interests. He elaborated that the signing of the Indonesia-Pakistan Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) on February 3 in Jakarta, and the inauguration of the Pakistan-Indonesia Business Forum (PIBF) in October 2011 had opened a new chapter in the bilateral commercial relationship. The ambassador expressed hope that these two significant achievements would help rapidly grow trade ties between the two countries. The envoy also mentioned the cooperation in the area of bilateral defence cooperation and said that the two countries had signed the Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) on July 21, 2010, to combat the emerging challenges of security. The ambassador also appreciated the help and assistance he has received from the government of Pakistan for promotion of relations between the two brotherly countries. pr

Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk

 

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