General Secretary of the CPV Central Committee Tô Lâm and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at the welcome ceremony for the former in Jakarta on Monday. VNA/VNS Photo

JAKARTA — A red-carpet welcome ceremony was held at Merdeka Palace - the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday for General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam (CPV) Central Committee Tô Lâm and his spouse Ngô Phương Ly, who are on a state visit to Indonesia at the invitation of Indonesian President and President of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) Prabowo Subianto.

As the two leaders ascended the ceremonial platform, the national anthems of Việt Nam and Indonesia were played, accompanied by a 21-gun salute, symbolising Indonesia's high regard for the visit.

After General Secretary Tô Lâm reviewed Indonesia's Guard of Honour, the two leaders introduced their respective high-level delegations attending the ceremony.

Before starting talks with the host, the Vietnamese Party leader signed the guestbook at the Presidential Palace, expressing his pleasure at visiting the beautiful archipelago nation. He reaffirmed his confidence in the strong and growing Việt Nam-Indonesia relationship, emphasising their shared commitment to regional and global peace and stability. He also expressed his shope that both nations will continue playing key roles as pillars of ASEAN and strengthening their enduring friendship and solidarity.

The two leaders then held a private meeting before leading their respective delegations in the official talks.

General Secretary of the CPV Central Committee Tô Lâm (right) and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto review the guard of honour at the welcome ceremony in Jakarta.

As scheduled, after the discussions, they will witness the signing of cooperation agreements and hold a joint press briefing. Later, President Prabowo Subianto will host an official banquet in honour of Tô Lâm and his spouse.

This marks the first visit by a Party chief of Việt Nam to Indonesia in nearly eight years, since August 2017.

The timing of the visit is particularly significant as the two countries are celebrating the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations this year, with Indonesia being the first Southeast Asian country to set up diplomatic ties with Việt Nam.

Over the past years, particularly since the establishment of the Strategic Partnership in 2013, Việt Nam – Indonesia cooperation has developed in a more comprehensive and intensive fashion. The exchange of high-ranking delegations and contacts have been carried out regularly through both bilateral and multilateral forums. — VNS