When President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo here Monday, he emphasized the significance of international cooperation in achieving post-pandemic recovery.

“It is significant that I chose Indonesia, Jakarta, to be my first visit of my presidency… for many reasons. One of those is that we are close in terms of not only geographical locations, but… in terms of culture…, in terms of ethnicity,” During their meeting at the Istana Bogor, Marcos, backed by other Philippine officials, told Widodo.

“And I think that it is going to be the strong partnerships that we will make, as we slowly come out of the pandemic economy, is what is going to lead us to success,” he continued.

“That is why we go once again to our friends and to our partners around the world, especially in the region, especially together with what we spoke about, the ASEAN member countries and the common concerns that we share. So again, it’s those partnerships I believe that will keep the stability of all of our plans and what we are hoping to do in the next few years.”

According to Marcos, the Philippines and Indonesia have been trading for thousands of years.

The Philippine president landed in Indonesia on Sunday for his first state visit since taking office on June 30. He’ll go to Singapore on Tuesday and return the next day.

Marcos expressed gratitude to Widodo for inviting him on a state visit.

“I would like to thank your government for your kind invitation. Although it is the first time I have been to Jakarta, we look around and it feels like home,” he says.

“You have welcomed us so warmly and we have felt the willingness of Indonesia to strengthen the partnership,” he stated.

Marcos was greeted with state honors at the Istana Bogor, the seat of power in Indonesia, the greatest economy in Southeast Asia.

Before accompanying the former inside the palace, Indonesian First Lady Iriana Widodo offered flowers to Philippine First Lady Liza Marcos.

To greet Marcos and his team, Indonesian military members dressed in traditional garb staged a military display. A 21-gun salute was fired while the national anthems of both countries were played.

Widodo welcomed Marcos’ formal delegation, which included House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual, First Son and Ilocos Norte Rep. Sandro Marcos, and Defense Secretary Jose Faustino Jr.

Marcos and his wife signed the guestbook at Istana Bogor before moving to the veranda, where they congratulated Widodo on the Indonesian Palace’s extensive vegetation and grass.

“There is a lot of oxygen here,” Widdo stated.

The two Southeast Asian presidents and their spouses proceeded to a neighboring lawn, where Marcos planted a pohon kayu ulin, a rare wood tree found in Southeast Asia’s eastern regions.

It is customary for visiting heads of state to plant trees on the grounds of Istana Bogor. Heads of state from Japan, China, Germany, Australia, and East Timor have also planted trees here.