OPENING OF THE GAGARIN MONUMENT IN JAKARTA

The ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Indonesia Lyudmila Georgievna Vorobyova, the Governor of Jakarta Anis Baswedan, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia Mahendra Siregar and other high-ranking guests. Representatives of the “Dialogue of Cultures – United World” Foundation attended the opening ceremony in the video format of the international zoom conference.

The ceremony began with the performance of the anthems of the two countries. Then, a festive Indonesian dance was performed by folk artists for all those present. A. Baswaden was the first to give a welcoming speech. He noted that Russian-Indonesian relations are developing in the spirit of friendship and mutual respect, and also emphasized the importance of contacts between Moscow and Jakarta, which have been sister cities since 2006. The governor of Jakarta dedicated a significant part of his speech to the feat of our great compatriot Yu. A. Gagarin. Mr. Baswaden noted that the installation of a monument to the first cosmonaut of the Earth in Jakarta will contribute to the growth of interest among local residents not only in the heroic figure of Gagarin, but also in Russian culture in general. After the governor’s speech, the audience was shown a video message from the Minister of the Moscow Government, Head of the Department of External Economic and International Relations Sergei Evgenievich Cheremin, who spoke about the importance of expanding bilateral contacts between Moscow and Jakarta, about similar challenges that megacities face during the pandemic, and also expressed the hope that already very soon it will be possible to resume joint projects, forums, exhibitions and continue to develop relations between sister cities.

The Russian Ambassador to Indonesia L.G. Vorobyova and the Governor of Jakarta A. Baswedan solemnly signed a memorial plaque that will decorate the Gagarin monument. Lyudmila Georgievna in her address separately thanked the author of the monument A. Leonov and the sponsor of the installation of the monument, the International Charitable Foundation “Dialogue of Cultures - United World”.

The last to speak was the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Mahendra Siregar. He noted that the words “sputnik” and “Gagarin” are familiar to everyone in Indonesia, and the cosmonaut himself is a real hero and a very popular figure. The deputy minister said that even among his acquaintances there are two people named at birth in honor of Gagarin. Mr. Siregar also spoke in favor of the comprehensive development of the partnership between Russia and Indonesia and expressed hope for a quick transition of bilateral relations between our countries to a qualitatively new level.

The project of installing monuments and bronze busts of the first cosmonaut of the planet Yuri Gagarin started in 2011. The International Charitable Public Foundation “Dialogue of Cultures - One World” advocates mutual understanding and cooperation between peoples, the exchange of cultural values and the preservation of friendly ties. The President of the Foundation, R.F. Bayramov, expresses gratitude for the assistance in installing the monument to the Indonesian authorities and congratulates the residents of Jakarta on the appearance of a memorial monument on the city map.