REPUBLIKA CO.ID., DARWIN - Indonesia wished to be the top ten trade partners for Australia, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) said on his speech in Northern Territory Parliament House, Darwin, on Monday night. The trade between Indonesia and Australia, SBY said, had been increasing since the signing of strategic partnership on 2005. 

SBY invites Australian investors to invest in Indonesian infrastructure through the Master Plan for the Acceleration and Expansion of Indonesia's Economic Development (MP3EI). "It (the investment) is not only in Corridor V, but also in Corridor VI," SBY said in his two day visit. 

Corridor V covers Bali, NTT, and NTB, while Corridor VI consists of Maluku, North Maluku, Papua, and West Papua. Thus, SBY expects Australia to become the top ten investors in Indonesia, like Malaysia and Singapore.

Meanwhile, Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard said Indonesia was not only the neighbor of Australia, but also a friend. "We are strategic partner," she said.

Trauma center visit

SBY and the First Lady Ani Yudhoyono visited the Critical Care and Trauma Response Center (NCCTSC) at Royal Darwin Hospital. This trauma center was jointly-built by both countries for the victims of natural disasters. 

The NCCRT Executive Director Dr Len Notaras said this center was built in response to the Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005 as more than 200 people, mostly Australians, were killed in the accidents.

SBY and Gillard spent an hour to take a close look at medical operation room, communication room, and other functional rooms built on the parking lot of the Hospital, reported by Nasihin Masha from Republika.

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