Merkel in Southeast Asia
July 10, 2012
German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in Indonesia Tuesday for an official visit to Southeast Asia's largest economy. She is to hold talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a retired army general.
Accompanied by Germany's state secretary for economic affairs, parliamentarians and representatives of German companies, the focus of the trip is on economic ties.
A senior aide said before leaving Germany, however, that "talks on arms deals are not on the agenda," and that no specific trade pacts or business contracts were expected to be signed.
Merkel will also meet rights activists, the chief justice of the constitutional court, the site of the country's tsunami early-warning system, which was built with German assistance, a Protestant church and a mosque.
Trade between Germany and Indonesia is growing at about 6 percent per year. Some 250 German companies operate in Indonesia. They include Siemens, BASF, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, Deutche Post DHL, Merck, Allianz and Deutsche Bank. Medium and small businesses are also active there.
International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde is also in Jakarta but there are no official plans for a meeting between her and the German chancellor.
Merkel's visit comes after President Yudhoyono's visit to Germany in 2009. She first visited the country in 1995 when she was the German environment minister.
jm/msh (Reuters, dpa, AFP)