Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto Arrives for Four-Day Visit to India Ahead of Republic Day Celebrations
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto arrived in New Delhi on Thursday night for a four-day visit, during which he will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attend India’s 76th Republic Day Parade.
This marks President Prabowo’s first state visit to India. He was received at the airport by Pabitra Margherita, the Minister of State for External Affairs.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that the visit would further strengthen the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal tweeted, “A warm welcome to President Prabowo Subianto @prabowo of Indonesia as he arrives in New Delhi on his first State Visit to India. Received by MoS @PmargheritaBJP at the airport. President @prabowo will be the Chief Guest for India’s 76th Republic Day celebrations. This visit will further strengthen the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.”
President Prabowo will be in India from January 23-26 and is set to be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations on January 26. During his visit, he is expected to review bilateral ties and discuss regional and global issues of mutual interest.
Ahead of his departure, President Prabowo shared his visit’s purpose on X, stating that it is aimed at strengthening strategic cooperation in security, maritime, and digital technology development. He also mentioned that after India, he would travel to Malaysia, where he will meet the Malaysian King and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“Today, I depart for New Delhi, India, to attend the 76th Republic Day celebrations of India. During my visit, I will meet with the President and Prime Minister of India to strengthen strategic cooperation in areas such as security, maritime, and digital technology development,” President Prabowo said. “After completing my agenda in India, I will continue my trip to Malaysia at the invitation of Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Close cooperation with friendly countries has always been our priority to build a stronger and more prosperous region together,” he added.
During his stay, President Prabowo will meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, President Droupadi Murmu, and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, the MEA said.
On January 25, he will meet with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar at the Taj Mahal Hotel at 4 p.m., and at 10 a.m. the next day, he will attend a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan, followed by a wreath-laying ceremony at Rajghat. He will hold talks with Prime Minister Modi at Hyderabad House at 12 p.m. and meet Vice President Dhankhar and President Murmu later in the day.
On January 26, President Prabowo will attend the Republic Day Parade as Chief Guest and, in the afternoon, join the “At Home” Reception hosted by President Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan before departing for Indonesia at 5:30 p.m.
Notably, with President Prabowo as Chief Guest, a 352-member Indonesian marching and band contingent will participate in the Republic Day Parade for the first time. Several MoUs and announcements are expected, and the third CEO Forum will take place on the sidelines.
President Prabowo will be the fourth Indonesian President to attend India’s Republic Day celebrations. In 2018, Prime Minister Modi visited Indonesia, elevating bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and adopting a shared vision for India-Indonesia Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. Modi and Prabowo also met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro in November.
Indonesia, now part of the BRICS group, appreciates India’s support for its membership in the emerging economies forum. Sources suggest that while President Prabowo’s visit is significant, a defense deal is unlikely to be finalized during this trip, although both nations have robust defense cooperation through the Defence Cooperation Agreement signed in 2018.
As close maritime neighbors with centuries-old cultural and trade links, India and Indonesia share a strong partnership. The Bali Yatra festival, celebrating historic voyages by Indian seafarers to Bali, exemplifies this cultural bond.
Indonesia is one of India’s largest trading partners in the ASEAN region, with bilateral trade reaching $29.4 billion in 2023-24. Indian investments in Indonesia amount to $1.56 billion across sectors like infrastructure, power, textiles, steel, automotive, mining, banking, and consumer goods.
