Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has departed for China, pushing through with a trip he had initially scrapped due to the weeklong protests that have rocked the Southeast Asian nation.
Prabowo traveled to Beijing on Tuesday evening to attend a major military parade, where Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to showcase his nation’s growing diplomatic sway and military might.
“To maintain good relations with the Chinese government, the President has decided to depart tonight and return to Indonesia the following evening,” State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi said in a press briefing late Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will also be gracing the event on Wednesday, meant to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.
The trip shows growing confidence that the social unrest in Indonesia may have already peaked. While there were still pockets of demonstrations in Jakarta and other major cities, there was relative calm on Tuesday and many companies in the capital city have allowed their employees to return to office.
Prabowo skipped the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Tianjin on Sunday, opting to stay at home instead to address the worst protests yet of his 10 months as president. The government acceded to a key demand of demonstrators, including scrapping the hefty lawmaker allowances that angered Indonesians. The police and military have also stepped up their presence after violence and looting over the weekend.
“The President, in making his decision, of course, took into account all relevant developments in the past few days in Indonesia,” said Hadi, adding that the leader is grateful that the recent issues were “quickly resolved.”
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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