Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Indonesia and the United Kingdom (U.K.) have agreed to strengthen partnerships in the health sector, especially in the provision of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The agreement was one of the priorities discussed by Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and her British counterpart Dominic Raab at the 3rd Indonesia-UK Partnership Forum held here on Wednesday (Apr. 7).

The U.K. is one of the COVID-19 vaccine sources, so it is a right partner to develop cooperation in this field.

"The cooperation on the health sector is very important to build resilience in our health industry. Solidarity and cooperation are keys to getting out of this pandemic,” Foreign Minister Retno said.

In addition, she also emphasized the importance of Britain's role in strengthening vaccine multilateralism.

Meanwhile, the British Secretary of State, among others, expressed his appreciation to the Indonesian Foreign Minister for playing an active role in promoting equal access to vaccines by becoming the co-chair of the COVAX AMC Engagement Group, and emphasized Britain's commitment to continue to be a trusted partner for Indonesia.

COVAX is a global initiative for equal access to the COVID-19 vaccines.

Raab also underlined that Indonesia and the U.K. have equal interests in various fields, such as in climate change, economic recovery, as well as defense and security.

The Indonesia-U.K. Partnership Forum was held for the first time in 2007, and was chaired by the Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The forum is a follow-up to the agreement between the heads of government of the two countries in 2006 to deepen the bilateral cooperation and promote strategic dialogues on global issues.

Reporting by Indonesia Window