Indonesia

Pope Francis appealed Wednesday for religious unity to counter extremism and intolerance, as the longest tour of the 87-year-old's papacy got into full swing in Muslim-majority Indonesia.

On the first full day of his four-nation trip to the Asia-Pacific, the pontiff zeroed in on the role all faiths can play on flashpoint security issues.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said that his country would invest in the development of Indonesia's new capital on Borneo island, which both nations share.

China has been especially active in Indonesia

A shipment of medical equipment and medicines donated by the Turkish government to Indonesia for battling COVID-19 arrived at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Aug. 8 evening.

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Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the medical aid consisted of 50 sets of ventilators and 600,000 boxes of medicine.

The death toll from severe flooding and landslides that struck the Indonesian capital Jakarta over the New Year rose to 43, the state-run disaster management agency said on Jan. 3.

For the first five months of 2019, trade with Indonesia is worth $ 137.3 million, an increase of nearly 300% compared to the same period in 2018, said Economy Minister Emil Karanikolov in his speech at the opening of Bulgarian-Indonesian business forum in Sofia.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said that the location of the country's new capital is already chosen, Reuters reported.

It is an area between the regions of Kutai Kartanegara and North Penajam Paser, near the port city of Balikpapan, a two-hour flight from Jakarta, Mr Widodo said.

The new capital will be operational from 2024, reported NOVA TV. 

The capital of Indonesia will no longer be Jakarta, according to BGNES. Indonesian authorities will begin the capital move in 2021, Xinhua news agency quoted Indonesian Planning Development Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro.

Indonesian forensic team members examine parts of airplane recovered from the area where a Lion Air plane is suspected to have crashed, at Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta, Indonesia on Oct. 30. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)

Indonesia's president formally invited foreign donors to contribute to rescue and recovery efforts on the quake-and-tsunami-struck island of Sulawesi Monday, but his government was at pains to stress the situation was under control.