REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, LISBON - Garuda Indonesia Airline is seeking a co-chair flight cooperation with the national airline of Portugal, TAP, which will offer flights from Jakarta to Amsterdam and Lisbon.

Garuda CEO Emirsyah Satar told the press in Lisbon, on Friday evening, that Garuda and the Transportes Aereos Portugueses (TAP) had held discussions, but they still needed the involvement of the transportation ministries of the two countries to discuss the service agreement.

"This cooperation will allow connectivity between Lisbon and Jakarta. While the connectivity cooperation is between Garuda and TAP, the co-chair scheme must have agreement (from the government of both countries), hence we will discuss the service agreement with the Transportation Ministry," Emirsyah explained.

The connecting flight will be operated as an extension of the Jakarta-Amsterdam flight with Garuda's airplanes, and the Amsterdam-Lisbon flight will continue with TAP's airplanes.

Emirsyah said the cooperation plan with TAP had a large potential, as the relation between European Union (EU) and ASEAN would include bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Portugal.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) Chairman Suryo Bambang Sulisto said Portugal could be an entry for Indonesia to trade and investment markets in South America and Africa.

"We can see a strategic relation between Indonesia and Portugal, which can open the gate to enter South America and Africa. This can be reached through the air links," he noted.

Garuda Indonesia and Kadin representatives were included in the entourage of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's working visit to Lisbon, Portugal.

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