Indonesia’s Minister of Defense and President-elect for the 2024-2029 term, Prabowo Subianto, conducted an official tour across Europe from July 24 to 31, 2024.
During his trip, Prabowo met with leaders from four countries: French President Emmanuel Macron, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Each of Prabowo’s visits to these friendly nations were marked by warm receptions and farewells from the respective leaders.
His first stop was at the Elysee Palace on Wednesday, July 24, where he was welcomed by French President Emmanuel Macron. Discussions between Prabowo and Macron centered around global security issues and plans to strengthen defense cooperation, including modernizing defense equipment, boosting the defense industry, and enhancing education and training programs.
In addition to meeting Macron, Prabowo also attended the opening of the Paris 2024 Olympics on behalf of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi). He used this opportunity to discuss Indonesia’s football initiatives with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and also explored the potential for Indonesia to host the 2036 Olympics with International Olympics Committee President Thomas Bach.
After France, Prabowo traveled to Serbia on Monday, July 29, where he met with President Aleksandar Vucic. Their discussions aimed to enhance political dialogue and promote economic cooperation across various sectors.
Vucic shared his enthusiasm for the meeting on social media, expressing his desire for increased cooperation between Serbia and Indonesia.
The following day, Prabowo visited Turkey to meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, where they discussed bilateral defense commitments and strengthening their armed forces and defense industries. Prabowo also visited the Ozdemir Bayraktar National Technology Center to explore advancements in defense technology.
Prabowo’s last stop on his European tour was in Russia, where he met with President Vladimir Putin. Discussions focused on enhancing cooperation between Indonesia and Russia in various fields such as education, tourism, food security, and defense. Prabowo also expressed interest in potential collaborations in nuclear energy and invited Russia to attend a defense exhibition in Indonesia scheduled for November 2024.
