Beijing (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Yudhoyono said Indonesia and China have agreed to revive a joint commission to expand the existing good ties between the two nations.

The joint commission will evaluate the existing relations and find opportunities to expand cooperation between the two countries, Yudhoyono said on the sidelines of a state visit in Beijing on Saturday.

"The joint commission will be directly responsible to the president," he added.

Additionally, the joint commission will deal with a number of sectors, including trade, investment, agriculture, tourism, energy, defence, and foreign relations, he noted.

He said both countries have also agreed to settle any bilateral problem in a cordial and peaceful way.

Yudhoyono arrived in Beijing on March 22 for a three-day visit. While in China, he met with President Hu Jintao, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, members of the Central Politburo of the Communist Party of China and the National Congress of China.

Earlier on Friday, President Yudhoyono and his counterpart Hu Jintao signed cooperation agreements valued at US$17.4 billion.

"The cooperation has been agreed upon in 15 Memorandums of Understanding. The sectors in which cooperation have been established include seaports, roads, alternative energy, the motorcycle industry, mining, construction in strategic areas and the Sunda Strait,

plantations, tourism, and the steel industry," said the President.

In 2011, Indonesia and China`s trade value reached US$50 billion. Both countries expect to see an increase in trade of about US$80 billion by 2015.

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Editor: Ade P Marboen
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