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On Jan. 17, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong welcomed the recent ratification of three agreements with Indonesia.

Triple treaties

Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement that Singapore welcomed Indonesia's Ratification of the Treaty for the Extradition of Fugitives (ET), and the Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA).

Both these treaties were signed by PM Lee and President Joko Widodo during the January 2022 Singapore-Indonesia leaders' meeting, along with the Flight Information Region (FIR) Agreement.

The ET and DCA were ratified in December 2022, while the FIR agreement was ratified earlier in September 2022.

While all the treaties have now been ratified by both countries, PM Lee said that the FIR agreement would need approvals from the International Civil Aviation Organisation.

After that a date for simultaneous entry into force for all three agreements will be mutually agreed.

Both PM Lee and MFA said the agreements were major steps in the two countries' bilateral relationship.

The ET will cover 31 types of crimes, and apply to crimes committed up to 18 years ago.

Meanwhile, the DCA will continue to ensure that the Singapore Armed Forces conduct military training and exercises in training areas in Indonesia, as well as maintain close defense ties.

Meanwhile, the FIR agreement realigns the boundary of the Jakarta FIR and Singapore FIR, but also includes a 25 year agreement to delegate provision of air navigation services in some parts of the Jakarta FIR to Singapore.

Vice-presidential visit

The acknowledgements of the ratification of the three treaties came while Indonesian Vice-President Ma'ruf Amin was in Singapore for an official visit.

Amin made a courtesy call on Singapore President Halimah Yacob on Jan. 16, where he expressed his appreciation for the completion of the three agreements.

He was quoted by Antara News as saying that the agreements further improved the cooperation between the two countries.

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Top image via Lee Hsien Loong/Facebook