Indonesian president to visit Pakistan on Jan. 26

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo will pay a state visit to Pakistan on Jan. 26 to Jan. 27, the Foreign Ministry said here on Friday.

The president will be accompanied by ministers and a large business delegation, a Foreign Ministry statement said. This will be the first visit of the president to Pakistan. He will also address a Joint Session of the Parliament, the statement said.

Widodo will also have talks with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. "President Widodo's visit will contribute towards strengthening existing fraternal ties between the two countries," the Foreign Ministry said.

Indonesia is the eighth largest trading partner of Pakistan and its largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Pakistan's bilateral trade with Indonesia stands around 2.1 billion U.S. dollars annually.

Pakistan is one of the largest importers of Indonesian palm oil. Bilateral trade is expected to grow manifold with the grant of duty free access to 20 tariff lines from Pakistan for export to Indonesia under the ambit of Preferential Trade Agreement, the foreign ministry said.

Source: Xinhua