Iran, Indonesia To Develop Economic Cooperation Using National Currencies - President

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd May, 2023) Tehran and Jakarta have signed a preferential trade agreement (PTA) and will develop their economic cooperation using their national currencies, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Tuesday.

"The target set for the development of trade and economic relations between the two countries ... is $20 billion. If we do not describe the sum in (US) Dollars, we should say that (we mean) an equivalent of this sum in (Indonesian) rupiahs and (Iranian) rials, which are the national currencies of the two countries. And we have decided to cooperate with this country and other countries using our national currencies," Raisi said at a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo, as quoted by the Tasnim news agency.

Earlier in the day, the Iranian government said on Telegram that Iran and Indonesia have signed 11 documents on cooperation, including the PTA and agreements on visa-free travel, cultural exchanges, pharmaceutical production, joint energy and scientific projects.

Raisi arrived in Indonesia on May 23 at the invitation of the country's president. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian described the visit as a pivotal moment and a new chapter in relations between the two countries.