Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (left) shakes hands with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi in Jakarta on Aug 9, 2017 (Photo: AFP)Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesia and Russia havepledged to strengthen cooperation in cyber-security and counter-terrorism asconcern grows about the spread of terrorism in Southeast Asia.
The commitment was reached at the talks onAugust 9 between Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and her Russian counterpartSergei Lavrov, who has been on a visit to the Southeast Asian country.
Speaking at a press conference in Jakarta,Russian FM Lavrov said the two countries would work together more closely tocounter the expansion of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS).
He stressed that the IS threat has not vanishedand its members have been spreading all over the world, including areas closeto the Russian and Indonesian borders.
For her part, Indonesia FM Marsudi said besidesstrong ties on political and defence issues, Indonesia wants to boost traderelations with Russia.
During the talks, the ministers also discussedtensions on the Korean peninsula, the East Sea issue and conflicts in theMiddle East, but they gave no details.
Indonesia and Russia have been both concernedabout threats from the IS. Indonesian officials said dozens of Indonesians haveflocked to the Philippine southern city of Marawi to fight with militants loyalto IS.
Meanwhile, the National Anti-TerrorismCommittee (NAC) of Russia has warned of threats from terrorists, namely IS, inthe country despite measures taken by authorised agencies to protect its peopleand facilities.-VNA
