The Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Vanuatu, The Honourable Moana Caracasses Kalosil, made an official visit to Indonesia at the invitation of the Indonesian Foreign Minister H.E. Dr N. Hassan Wirajuda on 6-10 March 2004 to further cement the bilateral ties between the two friendly countries.

During their tête-à-tête meeting both Foreign Ministers reaffirmed the commitment of the two countries to develop friendly relations and cooperation based on the principles of mutual respect, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit. Special emphasis was put on the Indonesian government's willingness to help Vanuatu develop its human resources under the Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) program that currently focuses on cooperation in agriculture, education and communications sectors.

The two Ministers also discussed many regional and international issues, including the efforts to combat trans-national crimes. It is against this backdrop that Minister Kalosil acknowledged Indonesia's significant contribution in raising the awareness of the region on this issue by organizing the Regional Conference on Money Laundering and Suppression of Terrorist Financing (Bali, December 2002); the First and the Second Regional Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Trans-national Crimes (Bali, February 2002 and April 2003); and, the Conference on Counter-Terrorism (Bali, February 2004).

The two Ministers also acknowledged the significant role played by the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) - to which Indonesia is a dialogue partner - in fostering the region's shared interests in security, prosperity, and democracy. It is within this context that Indonesia highly appreciated the continuous support of Vanuatu for Indonesia's sovereignty and territorial integrity on Papua in line with the PIF's Communiqué issued in Auckland (August 2003). Indonesia was also highly appreciative of the proposal put forward by the Vanuatu government to include Indonesia as a member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

Minister Kalosil also met with a number of ministers, including the Commander-in-Chief of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI), during which a number of agreements have been reached, solidifying the relations between Indonesia and Vanuatu in various fields. The Commander-in-Chief has specifically pledged to help build the police and self-defense forces of Vanuatu.

During the visit, Minister Kalosil also paid a courtesy call to President Megawati Soekarnoputri who has assured him Indonesia's keen interest to build stronger ties between the two nations.