Indonesian President Joko Widodo wants Australia in ASEAN

Banten Province, Indonesia | Indonesian President Joko Widodo has sought to reassert his country's role as a regional leader saying he wants to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership and seal a free trade deal with Australia as well as closer defence and diplomatic ties.

The president, who goes by the name Jokowi, said Australia should join the 10-member Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and flagged that economic growth in Indonesia would accelerate once the first stage of his infrastructure program was complete.