Jokowi: Indonesia will remain neutral in US-China spat; prefers to work on virus fight as Covid-19 total goes above 406,000

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo discussing with United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the Bogor Palace in West Java on Thursday evening (Oct 29,2020). - The Jakarta Post/Asian News Network

JAKARTA, Oct 30 (Jakarta Post/ANN): The government upheld its pledge to remain neutral in the rivalry between China and the United States on Thursday (Oct 29), as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stopped by Jakarta during a whirlwind Asian tour aimed at coaxing key countries in the region to stem the rise of China.

After a bilateral meeting with Pompeo, during which he praised Indonesia for safeguarding its “maritime sovereignty" in the North Natuna Sea and said that China's claims of the South China Sea were unlawful, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said Indonesia was sticking to its principle of a free and independent foreign policy.