Jakarta (ANTARA) - Speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) Puan Maharani has urged member countries of the Indonesia-Pacific Parliamentary Partnership (IPPP) to ensure that the Pacific region does not turn into an arena for great powers' rivalries."We must be careful so that the Pacific region does not become an arena for big countries' rivalries, and we must be careful not to get caught up in those rivalries," she said at the 2nd Meeting of the IPPP in Jakarta on Thursday.
She added that in order to create regional peace and stability, IPPP countries must cooperate to build mutual trust and understanding.
"As archipelagic countries, we face the same challenges such as climate change, disasters, and how to manage our seas and waters. Therefore, these various similarities can become capital for developing better relationships in the future," she said.
She noted that the IPPP meeting is taking place amid several challenges faced by countries in the Pacific region, such as geopolitical tensions, threats of conflict, polarization, the global economic slowdown, and global warming impact.
Indonesia understands that there is a sense of urgency to tackle those challenges, adding that the key to facing those challenges is cooperation and coordinated action through diplomacy, Puan said.
The House Speaker expressed the hope that the cooperation between the parliaments of countries in the Pacific region via the IPPP would also strengthen inter-governmental cooperation, as well as complement the regional architecture of cooperation in the Pacific, which prioritizes open and inclusive partnerships.
"This inter-parliamentary cooperation can also be a bridge for inter-community relations or people-to-people contact," she added.
Puan also highlighted that parliamentary diplomacy must build a peaceful culture and reject violence to resolve problems, which, according to her, is relevant amid the ongoing wars and conflicts in various parts of the world.
"Parliamentary diplomacy must be able to encourage countries in the Pacific to prioritize cooperation rather than unilateral action, collaboration rather than conflict, and mutually beneficial relationships rather than a zero-sum approach," she said.
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She said that a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Pacific region will positively contribute to peace and prosperity at the global level.
"Let us collaborate to promote the relations of Pacific countries with Indonesia and let us create a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Pacific region," she added.