Vietnam, Indonesia vow to fight illegal fishing, boost trade

HANOI, Vietnam – Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Tuesday that his country and Vietnam have agreed to co-operate more in fighting illegal fishing and hope to boost two-way trade.

Speaking at a joint news briefing with his Vietnamese counterpart, Tran Dai Quang, Jokowi said they hope their annual trade will reach $10 billion by 2020 from $6.8 billion now.

“We are committed to continue to strengthen co-operation in trade which over the past three years has seen a relatively good trend,” he said through a translator.

Jokowi also asked Quang to remove trade barriers.

Indonesia has taken a tough stance against illegal fishing since Jokowi took office in 2014, destroying hundreds of foreign fishing boats, mostly from Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand.

The two leaders witnessed the signing of a declaration on voluntary co-operation in combatting illegal fishing.

“We have agreed to boost co-operation in fighting illegal fishing,” he said, adding he hopes the two sides will soon complete their negotiations on the demarcation of their exclusive economic zones.

Quang said the two countries are committed to enhancing military and security co-operation to deal with traditional and non-traditional challenges which were increasing in the region.

Jokowi is on a three-day visit to Vietnam, where he will also attend the World Economic Forum meetings.