RI, Yemen to hold JMC meeting

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia and Yemen will jointly host a first ever Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) meeting between the two countries from Aug. 8 to Aug. 10 in Yogyakarta to boost bilateral relations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in Jakarta.

The ministry said that the JMC would discuss efforts to develop economic relations, trade and investment, and promote the expansion of cooperation in areas like education, industry, energy, culture, tourism, human rights and women's empowerment.

"It is the first time that we are holding this ministerial commission meeting between Indonesia and Yemen," the foreign ministry's director for information and media, Lutfi Rauf, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The Indonesian delegation will be lead by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, while the Yemeni delegation will be lead by its foreign minister, Bakr Al-Qirby.

The JMC will be preceded by a senior officials meeting, which will take place from Monday to Tuesday, with the ministerial meeting being held on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Yemen's Ambassador to Indonesia Ahmed Salem Saleh Al-Wahishi told the Post that Minister Bakr and his entourage would arrive in Jakarta on Sunday.

"During his stay in Indonesia, our Foreign Minister will meet President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda," Ambassador Al-Wahishi said.

During the JMC meeting, both countries are expected to sign several memoranda of understanding (MOUs), including MOUs on news exchanges between Antara and Saba news agencies, export development, duty free zone cooperation between the Batam Industrial Development Authority and the Aden Free Zone, and a protocol on investment in technical cooperation.