Chief Executive John Lee on Friday had a bilateral meeting with the Indonesian president Joko Widodo during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok, with both parties expressing a desire to foster relations between the two places.

In a meet-up arranged in between official APEC meetings, Lee told Widodo there are strong trade ties between Hong Kong and Indonesia, and that he was glad they could meet to further strengthen relations between the two places.

"The annual trade amounted to US$5 billion last year, and is rising. I am very glad that the relationship between Indonesia [and Hong Kong] has ever been going up," he said.

The Hong Kong leader also thanked the president for supporting the SAR's bid to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - a free trade agreement among more than a dozen Asia-Pacific countries.

"This is a very important agreement for Hong Kong and we also think Hong Kong has a lot to contribute to the overall success of RCEP."

In response, Widodo said Hong Kong's participation in RCEP will strengthen economic growth in the region, adding that he is confident the two places will have closer cooperation under the CE's leadership.

The two leaders also congratulated each other, with Lee saying Indonesia hosted a successful G20 leaders' summit recently, and Widodo congratulating Lee on being elected the SAR's chief executive earlier this year.

The CE sat down with the Singaporean prime minister Lee Hsien Loong in a separate meeting, along with Algernon Yau, the minister for commerce and economic development and other officials.

Writing on his social media, John Lee said Singapore is Hong Kong's largest trading partner amongst ASEAN countries, and called for more cooperation between the two sides.

"We welcome Singaporean businesses to partner with Hong Kong to tap into the vast opportunities presented by the Greater Bay Area and Belt and Road Initiative," the CE wrote.
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Last updated: 2022-11-18 HKT 20:49