The Russian Government presents a statue of Yuri Gagarin, the first cosmonaut who made it to space in 1961 on the Vostok I rover. The statue stands tall adorning Mataram Park, in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. It is in order to commemorate the 70th anniversary of bilateral relations between Indonesia and Russia, plus the friendship of Jakarta - Moscow,

This statue marks the 70th anniversary of Indonesia-Russia friendship

It was held at the Pattern Room, Jakarta City Hall, after representatives from Russia, namely Russian Ambassador to Indonesia, Lyudmila Vorobieva, together with Foreign Deputy Minister, Mahendra Siregar, and Ambassador to Russia and Belarus, Jose Antonio Morato Tavares, visited Jakarta Governor, Anies Baswedan, along with his ranks, on Wednesday (3/10) as quoted by Jakarta PPID's press release.

The governor accompanied by his partner, as well as city secretary and its ranks, welcomed the celebration moment about the friendly relations that had existed since 2006.

"This statue marks the 70th anniversary of Indonesia-Russia friendship, and our friendship has been marked by student exchanges since the 1950s. Moreover, in Jakarta, there are many signs of that friendship. First, there is the Russian-Indonesian Friendship Hospital, the second is the GBK Stadium, and now there is a Yuri Gagarin Statue. This is also exactly 60 years since the Russian cosmonaut, under the Soviet Union flag at the time, has circled Earth's orbit," he said.

He went on to say that Jakarta is an area on the world scene, where any nation can make friends. Russian-Indonesian friendship had been forged since President Soekarno's time in office. So, his name was remembered on one of the roads in Russia.

"Jakarta is an international city, here we build relationships with many nations, and one of our best friends is Russia. One way to foster this good relationship is by placing the statue in Mataram Park. It was initiated by the Russian Government in cooperation with the Foreign Ministry and Jakarta administration," he added.

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Lyudmila Vorobieva, appreciated the good relations that had existed between Indonesia and Russia over the past 70 years. She hoped, this relationship could further strengthen strategic relations in various fields in the future.

"Today we're very happy to celebrate this relationship by placing a statue of Yuri Gagarin in Jakarta. This is a symbol of bilateral relations that aim to strengthen our friendship in the future," she stated.

At the same time, Foreign Deputy Minister, Mahendra Siregar, added that the Indonesian government would launch advanced relations between the two countries in the future, as well as enter a new, higher stage in a bilateral process. "We're still planning it and need further discussion with the Russian government. It involves waiting for the planned arrival of President Vladimir Putin from Russia to make this happen," he closed.