On the occasion of the 67th anniversary of the Independence Day of the Republic of Indonesia, I wish to extend my heartiest greetings and best wishes to all Indonesians living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Over the past 15 years, Indonesia – a country with 240 million people – has dramatically raised its international profile. It has become the world's third largest democracy and has grown to be Southeast Asia's largest economy with the middle class growing at about eight million per year. Indonesia has also achieved stable GDP growth of 5-6 percent per year since recovering from the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis. Economic recovery has created more job opportunities, and has witnessed a decline in the unemployment and poverty rates. Fitch Ratings returned the country to investment-grade status in December 2011 for the first time since 1997, reflecting the increasing optimism for the country's future. This positive development also reflects in the bilateral relations between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia in various fields, among others indicated by the significant increase on two-way trade by 12.4 percent. There is a growing number of Saudi tourists visiting Indonesia as well as a large number of Indonesian Umrah pilgrims who visit Makkah and Madinah, not to mention that more than 200,000 Indonesian Haj pilgrims constitute the largest hajj entourage sent by a single country every year. Besides, Saudi Arabia has also for several decades become home for thousands of Indonesians for work or study. We are pleased to witness that they live with their Saudi brothers harmoniously. On this happy occasion, I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to the people and the government of Saudi Arabia under the leadership of King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, for providing invaluable support, facilities and excellent services to all Indonesian citizens living in the Kingdom in general and to Indonesian Haj and Umrah pilgrims in particular. We share a fervent hope for a far stronger relationship between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia in the years to come. Zakaria Anshar
