Indonesia to use IORA chairmanship to realize maritime axis goal

Jakarta, June 11 (Antara) -- After taking over the chairmanship of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) from Australia later this year, Indonesia will make use of the position to realize President Joko Widodo's world maritime axis vision. "Regarding Indonesia's leadership of the IORA, we will associate our ideas and new vision and mission with our national interest to become a world maritime axis," Director of Intraregional Cooperation for the Asia-Pacific and Africa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Benyamin Carnadi said here on Thursday. Carnadi noted that Indonesia will take over the IORA chairmanship for the 2015 to 2017 period from Australia in October this year. He added that it was crucial for Indonesia to take the opportunity of the IORA chairmanship to associate it with the vision and mission of the organization in the future. "When Indonesia is the chairman of the IORA, we will certainly associate its cooperation programs with our national interest and the government's priority to improve connectivity and transform Indonesia into the world's maritime axis," he emphasized. Carnadi further noted that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will coordinate with other ministries and institutions to harmonize the theme raised by the IORA with national priority programs. "To know where and how we can make use of this IORA chairmanship for our national interests, we will coordinate with several relevant ministries/agencies under the coordination of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," he affirmed. Carnadi also pointed out that some IORA programs that will be associated with the national interests of Indonesia are cooperation in the fields of maritime security, disaster risk management and tourism, among others. The IORA meeting for transfer of chairmanship from Australia to Indonesia will be held in Padang, West Sumatra, from October 20 to 23. Earlier, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno L. P. Marsudi had stated that Indonesia was ready to expand the promotion of President Joko Widodo's maritime axis vision to the IORA platform when its takes over its chairmanship from Australia.