King Salman arrives in Indonesia to cheering crowds

Cheering crowds welcomed King Salman on Wednesday as he began the first visit by a Saudi monarch to Indonesia for almost 50 years, seeking stronger economic ties with the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country.
The king — accompanied by about 1,000 people, including princes and ministers — disembarked from his plane using an escalator as he arrived at an airport in Jakarta, the latest stop on an Asian tour.
The 81-year-old was greeted by president Joko Widodo and Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, a Christian who is standing trial for blasphemy.
Crowds of flag-waving schoolchildren lined the route as a convoy of vehicles carrying the king and his entourage sped through pouring rain to a presidential palace in the nearby city of Bogor, where a marching band played the Indonesian national anthem.
King Salman was due to hold talks with Mr Widodo at the palace.
Almost 460 tons of equipment have been flown in for the visit.
Most has been transported to the resort island of Bali, where the king will take a holiday after visiting Jakarta.
The visit — the first by a Saudi Arabian king to Indonesia for 47 years — is one of the highlights of a rare Saudi royal tour of Asia which is seeking investment as the world’s biggest oil exporter tries to diversify its economy.
"This is an extremely historic visit for us," Indonesian cabinet secretary Pramono Anung said before the visit.
The king is due to give a speech to parliament on Thursday and visit South-east Asia’s biggest mosque during his three-day visit to Jakarta.
Business deals could be announced, and a series of cooperation memoranda are also set to be signed on issues ranging from security, to health and education.
Indonesia will also seek approval to send more citizens to the annual Haj pilgrimage in western Saudi Arabia.
King Salman will spend several days on Hindu-majority Bali, with the monarch and his entourage reportedly set to stay in five luxury hotels.
As part of the elaborate preparations for the visit, 150 chefs have been hired to cook food for the king and his party, according to local media.
King Salman kicked off his three-week Asian tour in Malaysia earlier this week, and is also set to visit Japan, China and the Maldives.

Source: The National