Foreign Minister Sugiono Explains President Prabowo's France Visit During Idul Adha

Foreign Minister Sugiono explained the background of President Prabowo Subianto’s working visit to France this week, which coincided with the Idul Adha holiday. Sugiono stressed that President Prabowo’s presence in Paris was a diplomatic commitment to fulfil a repeated invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron. “This visit is to meet President Macron’s invitation, which had been postponed several times,” Sugiono stated in a formal statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu) in Jakarta on Wednesday (27/5/2026). According to Sugiono, Macron directly extended the invitation for another visit during their April meeting in Paris, proposing a late May date. Given that the French side had proposed this schedule twice, President Prabowo decided to proceed with the visit this week. The visit is also seen as a reciprocal gesture to Macron’s previous state visit to Indonesia. The frequency of meetings between the two leaders underscores the deepening bilateral ties between Jakarta and Paris. Beyond ceremonial agendas, the working visit carries crucial strategic missions for national interests. Based on the 14 April meeting, two key sectors are the focus for strengthening cooperation: Indonesian government aims to enhance technology mastery of military equipment through educational and research collaboration. This May 2026 visit adds to Prabowo’s series of strategic meetings in France. Previously, he attended Bastille Day on 14 July 2025, a strategic strengthening visit on 23 January 2026, and a closed-door meeting on 14 April 2026. The move confirms France’s position as one of Indonesia’s primary strategic partners in Europe, particularly in military modernisation and high-tech human resource development.