Prabowo, Macron Discuss Defense, Economic Partnership in Paris Meeting

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto met with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Thursday, May 28, 2026, to deepen bilateral ties. The leaders focused on strategic sectors, including defense cooperation, clean energy, education, research, and the implementation of the Indonesia-EU Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA).

Prabowo characterized the relationship between Indonesia and France as "at its highest level yet," praising Macron's leadership in fostering a closer partnership. He noted that both nations share common views on many global and regional matters, attributing the positive development of their bilateral ties to Macron's direct support. The defense sector, in particular, was highlighted as an area of strong and progressing connection, with cooperation in science and technology also showing growth.

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Today, I believe we will discuss a number of key issues, [including] cooperation in defense, clean energy, education, research, and the implementation of the IEU-CEPA deal.

The visit was a reciprocal gesture following Macron's prior trip to Indonesia. Foreign Minister Sugiono explained that Prabowo's trip, initially planned for April, was postponed due to scheduling issues. Macron extended a new invitation, which Prabowo accepted, marking this as his third visit to France in the past five months, following earlier trips in January and April. The meeting underscored the strong diplomatic engagement between the two nations.

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In several aspects, Indonesia and France share a mutual stance, and currently our bilateral relations are very good. This is none other than because of the direct support from President Macron.