Kyiv is on Standby to Welcome President Jokowi's Visit
In the middle of the Russia-Ukraine war, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo visited Kyiv and Moscow over two successive days on a mission to promote peace between the two countries.
By
NINA SUSILO
·5 minutes read
BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN/LAILY RACHEV
President Joko Widodo and Mrs. Iriana Joko Widodo on the extraordinary train from Przemysl Glowny Station in the city of Przemysl, Poland, to Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday (28/6/2022) night.
KYIV, KOMPAS — Indonesia is showing its solidarity with humanity and contributing to the Russia-Ukraine peace efforts through President Jokowi's visits to Ukraine and Russia. Humanitarian aid is being delivered on the sidelines of the President's visit to Ukraine.
After attending a series of G7 meetings in Germany on Tuesday (28/6/2022), the President left for Poland, accompanied by Foreign Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi and other officials. Afterwards, the group continued its journey to Ukraine by train.
President Jokowi and his entourage are scheduled to take the train from Przemysl Station near the Polish-Ukrainian border at 8:00 p.m. local time. After traveling around 12 hours, they are expected to arrive in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv at around 9:00 a.m.
One day before President Jokowi's arrival, the security in Kyiv appeared to be tighter than on previous days. Since Sunday afternoon, the Ukrainian media have been reporting on the President’s planned visit.
By Tuesday afternoon, the number of armed officers around Maidan Nezalezhnosti, or Independence Square, had increased compared to the previous day. Usually, only a patrol of conscripts was seen. On Tuesday, groups of police officers, soldiers and conscripts were seen carrying various arms.
The patrol units immediately approached anyone who was seen recording a video or taking a photograph. In fact, the security guards around the square in downtown Kyiv usually allowed people to take pictures or record videos. Even though Ukraine is in a state of war, many people take videos and photos of downtown Kyiv.
On Tuesday, only members of the press who had registered at the Ukrainian Armed Forces headquarters were allowed to take videos and photos. Patrolling officers asked for military-issued press accreditation before allowing journalists to take videos or photos.
In addition, members of the national security agency and the Ukrainian Presidential guards were also seen at a number of locations that President Jokowi was scheduled to visit. Since Tuesday morning, they have been seen in the streets around Maidan Nezalezhnosti and other areas. Together with members of the Presidential Security Service (Paspampres) and the Indonesian Presidential guards, they discussed the details of escorting the Indonesian President's entourage while in Ukraine.
For this trip to Ukraine, according to Paspampres Commander Maj. Gen. Tri Budi, 39 personnel made up the security unit attached to the President and First Lady Iriana Widodo. Various scenarios were anticipated prior to President Jokowi's departure in a series of exercises at the Paspampres Command Headquarters on Jl. Tanah Abang 2 in Jakarta.
BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN/LAILY RACHEV
President Joko Widodo and Mrs. Iriana Joko Widodo arrived at Przemysl Glowny Station, Przemysl, Poland, Tuesday (28/6/2022) night. Jokowi and his entourage took an extraordinary train to Kyiv, Ukraine.
Itinerary
In Ukraine, the President’s main purpose is to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv. The palace is the office of the President of Ukraine and is located less than 2 kilometers from Independence Square.
Other scheduled events during the President’s Ukraine visit include the handover of humanitarian aid. The President is also scheduled to visit several locations in Ukraine. The Indonesian Embassy in Kyiv is finalizing the agenda for his visit to Mariinsky Palace.
A number of sources at the Ukrainian Ministry of Health confirmed that Indonesia would provide health assistance worth US$5 million. President Jokowi is also scheduled to visit hospitals and clinics receiving Indonesian aid.
In Ukraine, the President’s main purpose is to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Mariinsky Palace in Kyiv.
From a few days ago, Indonesian Paspampres personnel and presidential guards have been seen in Kyiv and several other areas the President is planning to visit, accompanied by members of the Ukrainian national security agency.
The duration of President Jokowi's visit is approximately the same as the duration of the visits of four European leaders on 17 June 2022. At that time, the four leaders arrived in the morning and left Kyiv in the afternoon. They traveled on special trains, not public passenger trains.
Land transportation is the now only option for reaching Kyiv because Boryspil Airport and Antonov Airport, which are the closest to Kyiv, have been closed for a long time. On the first day of the war, the two airports became the primary target of the Russian attack.
BIRO PERS SEKRETARIAT PRESIDEN/LAILY RACHEV
President Joko Widodo and Mrs. Iriana Joko Widodo board an extraordinary train at Przemysl Glowny Station, Przemysl, Poland, Tuesday (28/6/2022) night for their trip to Kyiv, Ukraine.
Peace
The war is still ongoing in various parts of Ukraine. Therefore, President Jokowi's visit to Ukraine is not only for delivering humanitarian aid. The President will continue to encourage all parties to seek a peaceful solution.
In addition to President Zelenskyy, he will also call on Russian President Vladimir Putin for peace. The Kremlin has announced that Putin will host Jokowi in Moscow on Thursday (30/6).
Peace must be encouraged because civilians continue to be victims of the war. On Sunday and Monday (26-27/6), at least 21 civilians were killed when a Russian missile hit an apartment complex in Kyiv and a shopping center in Kremenchuk, Poltava, around 325 kilometers southeast of Kyiv.
Russia insisted that the second target of its attack was an assembly plant and a cache of weapons supplied by the United States and its allies to Ukraine. The Ukrainian Interior Ministry denied the Russian statement.
"There are no military facilities within a 5-kilometer radius of the shopping center [in Kremenchuk]," said Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyy.
Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ignat said Russia fired Raduga Kh-22 missiles from Tupolev Tu-22M3 aircraft. The bomber was flying over the Russian city of Kursk, nearly 350 kilometers from Kremenchuk.
Kyiv has tracked down the pilot who flew the bomber and plans to take the pilot to the International Criminal Court.
On Tuesday, Ukraine issued air raid warnings at least four times. One of the attacks consisted of eight missiles fired at Mykolaiv. Of these, three missiles were intercepted while the five others hit their targets. The former Ukrainian army defense position and Mykolaiv Stadium were the targets of the attack.
