Jakarta – The Indonesian Military (TNI) has announced the strengthening of a partnership with the UK military following a bilateral meeting between the two countries at the 2016 Annual Chiefs of Defense Conference (CHOD) in the Philippines.
TNI chief of staff Vice Adm. Didit Herdiawan represented the TNI in the recent bilateral talks with Adm. Sir Philip Jones, the UK's first sea lord and chief of naval staff.
"We consider England as a country that has continuously supported democratic reform in Indonesia since 1998. England is also a country that has a strong role in global politics," Didit said as quoted by kompas.com on Monday.
Didit claimed that military relations between the two states had gone from strength to strength, including an ongoing commitment to an agreement signed by both countries' defense ministers in 2012 in London.
The agreement touches on military education, military training and defense industries. "The meeting provides good momentum particularly [to discuss] regional security threats and is expected to contribute to the already good relationship between the two countries," Didit said.