Joint Statement on the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney and the President of Republic of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto

September 24, 2025

Ottawa, Ontario

“Today in Ottawa, at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, President of the Republic of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto undertook a visit to Canada. This was the first meeting of the Leaders in Ottawa in 25 years, marking a new chapter in the enduring friendship between Indonesia and Canada founded on mutual respect, trust, and a shared commitment to building more ambitious and targeted cooperation.

The Leaders witnessed the signing of the Indonesia-Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (ICA-CEPA), a transformative trade agreement that reflects Canada and Indonesia’s shared objective to unlock new opportunities for trade and economic diversification, investment, innovation, and inclusive and sustainable growth. It serves as a platform to strengthen trade and investment ties, expand business opportunities, and foster cooperation in key areas, including food security, critical minerals, renewable energy, and the digital economy.

The Leaders agreed that ICA-CEPA reflects mutual commitment to opening trade, in accordance with the rule of law and in respect for internationally agreed trade rules. This is essential to uphold openness and predictability in global trade, maintain global economic stability and safeguard supply chain resilience. The Prime Minister and President agreed that joint trade facilitation on prime agricultural commodities, including agri-food, can further strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation in support of Indonesia’s food security agenda and sustainable two-way trade. They underlined the importance of supporting SMEs and women entrepreneurs, expanding access to finance, and facilitating their participation in global value chains.

The Leaders noted the importance of broad development cooperation, which will support implementation of the CEPA; explore new innovative programming to strengthen our collaboration as reliable trading partners; and continue to include women’s empowerment and climate change as key priorities. In that light, Canada also welcomes Indonesia’s support for the Canada-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement as well as supports Indonesia’s interest to accede to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Canada supports Indonesia’s commitment to reach Net-Zero by 2060 and welcomes its desire to integrate clean technologies and new and renewable energy sources into its energy mix.

The Leaders reaffirmed their shared attachment to promoting and safeguarding peace and addressing global issues and reiterated their shared commitment to advancing defence and security cooperation, as demonstrated by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperative Activities in the Field of Defence, which complements the previously signed Memorandum of Understanding on Military Cooperation. Prime Minister Carney and President Prabowo agreed to support the development of their defence industries, acknowledging the importance of the Indo Defence Expo and Canada’s Global Defence and Security Trade Show (CANSEC), the Indonesia-Canada Defence dialogue and ongoing collaboration under the Military Training and Cooperation Program, complemented by signature training events such as the Super Garuda Shield and Multilateral Naval Exercise Komodo.

To guide future engagement, the Leaders also mandated their foreign ministers to finalize, as soon as possible, a 2026-2029 Canada-Indonesia Plan of Action to build on the two countries’ shared commitment as pluralistic democracies to deliver meaningful and lasting benefits for the peoples of both countries. This Plan of Action will provide a roadmap for a strategic, forward-looking, and outcome-oriented cooperation across the three main pillars: economic partnership, defense and political cooperation, and people-to-people ties. The leaders discussed greater ease of travel between the citizenss of the two countries to strengthen people-to-people ties, education, tourism and business exchanges by, in part, making travel easier, faster, and safer.

The Leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues. Canada reaffirmed its support for ASEAN centrality as a driving force in sustaining an open, transparent, and inclusive regional architecture, in line with the ASEAN Charter and international law.

They expressed deep concern over the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and the worsening situation in the West Bank and reaffirmed the urgency of achieving a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace based on a two-state solution, and welcomed opportunities to cooperate on humanitarian assistance and reconstruction efforts. Indonesia welcomes Canada’s official recognition to the Palestinian Statehood.

Prime Minister Carney and President Prabowo also welcome today’s agreement between Export Development Canada (EDC) and the Indonesia’s Investment Authority (INA), to explore cooperation in sectors such as infrastructure, cleantech and renewable energy, and agrifood, as well as the today’s agreement between the Business Council of Canada and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Leaders further welcomed the potential to expand partnership and investment collaboration between sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, as well as development finance institutions and other institutional investors. These agreements will further deepen trade and investment, and become catalysts for opening new and deeper partnerships with concrete, lasting benefits for their peoples.”

---

Noah Notes: This has been a long time coming, and I am overjoyed to see this government taking a proactive and full-force effort to develop new relationships in the Indo-Pacific. As we look to the conclusion of a FTA with the ASEAN bloc, and Indonesia looks to complete their ascension into CPTPP and OECD, the time for working on a new, strategic relationship has never been more important.

Indonesia is home to nearly 300 million people, and is set to join the top 10 largest economies within the next fifteen years, according to the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The star of this is the new Canada-Indonesia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed today. This agreement not only represents first-ever bilateral trade agreement with an ASEAN country, but also creates new frameworks for further cooperation in energy, commerce, and defence.

Not only will this agreement, set to begin in 2026 reduce or remove tariffs on 95% of Canadian products but also includes:

• A new Market Leader Partnership Agreement between Export Development Canada (EDC) and the Indonesia Investment Authority (INA). Under this partnership, EDC will make debt financing of up to $825 million available to the INA.

• An agreement between the Business Council of Canada and Kadin, Indonesia’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to strengthen trade and investment ties between Canada and Indonesia.

• A new Defence Cooperation Agreement, building on the Military Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding signed last month. Together, these arrangements will deepen collaboration on military training and education, maritime security, cyber defence, and peacekeeping.

It is more than I was expecting in one go, but believe me, I am ecstatic to see of brought to the forefront. The opportunities for Canada to be an economic player in the Indo-Pacific, to me, are limitless.

However we must remember that, while not a new player, we have been a relatively minor one and for many Indo-Pacific nations we are new to the playing field for them. Indonesia in included in that. We have to put in the work to ensure that we can create our own space and relationship with the Indo-Pacific, and more specifically ASEAN, countries.

From Agriculture to Nuclear we are in a position to play a long-term, developmental partner to countries across the globe. Be that offering the transitional package to clean, carbon-free energy, including as a provider of LNG, to helping provide support against threats like Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing through things like the Dark Vessel Detection Programme.

Canada does have a lot to offer partners like Indonesia, more than many are readily willing to admit. As Canada looks to being a more active player in the Indo-Pacific, and inevitably push back against encroaching PRC influence, we will need to start deepening these ties and leveraging our financial, economic and security assets in a whole-of-government approach to show our commitment to our ASEAN partners.

One of the best ways to garauntee and bokster our security starts helping to build up and strengthen partners abroad. These agreements won't be the tipping scale that does that. It will open the door though and that is always the hardest and most important step.

I am excited by this years string of relationship building annoucnements, from the Philippines, Poland, Ukraine, Republic of China, and now Indonesia. I know I missed a few, but you get the idea. Its been a fine day for Canadian foreign relations. Lets hope we can keep that streak up!