Yudhoyono To Hold State Banquet In Rudd's Honor

Jakarta, July 4 (Antara) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to hold a state banquet in honor of Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at the State Palace here on Thursday night. Rudd accompanied by First Lady Therese Rein are scheduled to arrive here on Thursday for an Indonesia-Australia Annual Leaders` Meeting (ALM), Teuku Faizasyah, President Yudhoyono`s special aide for international affairs, said in a press statement. The meeting between the two heads of government will take place at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, West Java, on Friday. The Bogor meeting will be the third since the first such meeting was held in Bali in 2011 and the second in Darwin in 2012. The two leaders are expected to discuss a number of bilateral issues at the Bogor meeting, including economic cooperation, investment and community relations. They will also discuss regional and global issues of common concern, such as APEC and G20 cooperation. While in Indonesia, the Australian prime minister is also scheduled to attend a breakfast meeting involving members of the two countries` chambers of commerce and industry. "ALM is the supreme forum within the framework of Indonesia-Australia bilateral cooperation. This forum is strategic because it is designed to evaluate a lot of progress achieved in the bilateral cooperation in pursuit of comprehensive partnership," Faizasyah said.