China’s Representative Praises Close Ties with Indonesia as Relations Warm
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia — Bilateral relations between the Republic of Indonesia and China continue to develop positively and to the benefit of both sides. This was strongly reflected at the “Global South Dialogue: China-Indonesia Roundtable Forum”, held in Jakarta on Monday (19 October 2026).
Zhou Kan, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China to Indonesia, expressed deep appreciation for the close comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, which has now entered its 11th year. He highlighted the steady deepening of political trust under the strategic guidance of their respective heads of state.
“President Xi Jinping has invited President-elect Prabowo to attend the APEC Informal Leaders’ Meeting in Shenzhen next month, in the hope that this visit will provide a strong new impetus for building a China-Indonesia community with a shared future,” Zhou said.
Economic integration between the two Global South giants is also accelerating, he said. China has been Indonesia’s largest trading partner for 13 consecutive years and has ranked among its top three sources of foreign investment for 10 consecutive years.
“We are also pleased to see increasingly close cultural and people-to-people exchanges. In the first seven months of this year, the number of visits to Indonesia by Chinese tourists exceeded 1.11 million,” he said.
Other key figures at the forum voiced similar support. Global Times president and editor-in-chief Guan Kejiang stressed the importance of candid communication in reducing assumptions.
“We also need to foster greater understanding and narrow the distance between us in order to build trust among Global South countries,” he said.
Representing Indonesia, Noor Sona Maesana Mushonnif, Special Staff to the Minister of Investment and Downstreaming and Head of the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), responsible for accelerating downstreaming and strengthening national businesses, said the cooperation offered major opportunities for further exploration.
“The cooperation has developed in mineral processing, electric-vehicle battery supply chains and various manufacturing activities,” she said.
Meanwhile, Maliki, Deputy for Community Empowerment, Population and Employment at the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), said that putting people at the heart of development was essential.
“Indonesia-China cooperation needs to be designed to deliver greater benefits to the public,” Maliki concluded.