JAKARTA (ANN/THE JAKARTA POST) – During a bilateral meeting on Wednesday with Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Secretary-General Hussein Al Sheikh, Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Sugiono reiterated the country’s dedication to advocating for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia.
“I will make sure that the issue of Palestine remains at the forefront of Indonesian diplomacy, and we will continue to stand firm with the Palestinian people,” said Sugiono, newly appointed as foreign minister, in a statement released by the Foreign Ministry on Thursday.
Sugiono also affirmed Indonesia’s commitment to humanitarian aid for Palestinians, through direct support or via international organisations like the UN’s relief agency UNRWA and the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
Arriving in Kazan to attend the summit, Sugiono emphasized that a unified approach was essential for peace and stability in the Middle East amid escalating conflict.
“In the summit, Indonesia will voice a message of peace and call for unity among developing countries and those of the Global South to increase solidarity and play an important role in creating a more inclusive, just, and equal world order,” he stated prior to the summit.
This marks Sugiono’s first international engagement since being appointed on Monday as foreign minister in President Prabowo Subianto’s Red and White Cabinet.
President Prabowo also reaffirmed Indonesia’s stance in his inauguration speech, pledging continued support for an independent Palestine free from Israeli annexation.
“We have a principle that we have to be in solidarity with and defend oppressed peoples around the world. Therefore, we support the Palestinian cause of freedom,” the President asserted on Sunday.
