REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, NEW DELHI -- Indonesia and India have agreed to increase cooperation in trade standardization, youth affairs and sports, and eradication of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. The two countries exchanged memorandum of understanding (MoUs) for cooperation in these areas in the presence of Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Indian Prime minister Narendra Modi. Later, the two leaders held a joint press conference after a bilateral meeting at Mughal Room in Hyderabad House here on Monday.

The MoU for cooperation in trade standardization between Indonesia's National Standardization Agency (BSN) and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) was exchanged by foreign minister Retno Marsudi on behalf of Indonesia and her Indian counterpart. The MoU for cooperation in youth affairs and sports including information exchange was exchanged between the Indonesian ministry of youth affairs and its Indian counterpart.

The third MoU was a joint communique on voluntary international cooperation to combat illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing and promote sustainable fisheries governance. President Joko Widodo hailed the signing of the MoU on trade standardization, saying it would help increase trade between the two countries and support greater economic cooperation and people-to-people contact. "Indonesia has also invited India to increase investment cooperation in pharmaceutical, IT and automotive fields," he said.

Indonesia is a valuable trade partner of India and relations between the two countries have been strong historically, he stated. As the biggest economy in Southeast Asia, Indonesia must increase strategic cooperation with India, one of the world?s biggest economies, he noted. "We have agreed to build a stronger partnership," he said.

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