Indonesia says China has pledged US$21B in new investment to strengthen ties

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday pledged US$21.7 billion in new Chinese investment in Indonesia to strengthen the countries' economic and political ties, an official said.

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday pledged US$21.7 billion in new Chinese investment in Indonesia to strengthen the countries' economic and political ties, an official said.

Li arrived in Jakarta on Tuesday to attend the three-day summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and meet with Indonesian leaders.

President Joko Widodo hosted Li at the colonial-style Merdeka palace in Jakarta on Friday and discussed ways to expand trade and investment. He sought China's help in plans to move Indonesia's capital from congested and polluted Jakarta on the main island of Java to Nusantara on Borneo island.

After the meeting, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi announced the new Chinese investment pledge, which follows a previous US$44.89 billion investment commitment made when Widodo met Chinese President Xi Jinping in July. Details of the new investment weren't announced.

Marsudi said Widodo asked China, Indonesia's largest trade and investment partner, to "realize these commitments immediately" and urged it to explore investment in other sectors, such as maritime and fisheries.

The two leaders also oversaw the signing of six agreements on e-commerce, support for enterprises, industrial cooperation, agriculture, fisheries and science and technology, Marsudi said.

On Wednesday, Li took a test ride on Indonesia's new US$7.3 billion high-speed rail line, which was funded largely with Chinese loans. It connects Jakarta and Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province, and is part of China's Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.