On 10 February 2016, H.E. Mr. Soepriyatno, Member of Parliament from the opposition Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party, together with other Indonesian MPs paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Virasakdi Futrakul, Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, on the occasion of their visit to Thailand during 9 – 12 February 2016. Their visit serves to further strengthen ties between the House of Representative of Indonesia and the National Legislative Assembly of Thailand. The Indonesian MPs are scheduled to pay a courtesy call on the President of the National Legislative Assembly, and will also hold talks with the Indonesia – Thailand parliamentary friendship group. Furthermore, the Indonesian MPs will hold discussions with the Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking (JSCCIB) on 11 February 2016.

          During the call, both sides expressed satisfaction not only in the close bilateral ties between Thailand and Indonesia, but also in the continuous exchange of visits both at the high-levels and people to people contacts. The visit by H.E. Mr. Soepriyatno and the Indonesian MPs delegation promotes closer relations amongst both nations. On this occasion, the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs informed his Indonesian counterpart of the implementation of the road map for general elections in 2017. The Vice Minister also stressed the Thai government’s commitment to cooperate with Indonesia in finding a sustainable solution to the problem of illegal fishing in line with the outcome of the meeting between the Prime Minister of Thailand and the President of Indonesia at the Asia-Africa Summit in Jakarta on 23 April 2015, and the meeting between the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives and the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. On security issue, the Thai side expressed condolences over the Jakarta bombings on 14 January 2016 and its readiness to cooperate with Indonesia in countering terrorism and extremism.

          H.E. Mr. Soepriyatno has been re-elected and currently serves his second term as a Member of Parliament from the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerinda) Party. He is also a chairman of the board of PT Permata Husada Sakti and PT Elang Empat Lima.