During their talks in Jakarta on Thursday, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and visiting Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang agreed to boost the two countries’ relations into a strategic partnership. President Sang said the strategic partnership will help bring the two countries’ ties to a new height, for mutual interests and for peace, stability, cooperation and prosperity in the region and the world. Both leaders agreed to continue stepping up the implementation of the “Action Plan for the 2012-2015 period” and strengthening their traditional friendship and trust through regular exchanges at all levels. President Yudhoyono agreed to soon set up a Vietnam-Indonesia Friendship Association to enhance the mutual understanding of the two countries’ people. The two presidents shared the view that both countries will make stronger efforts to increase two-way trade from more roughly US$4.6 billion in both 2011 and 2012 to US$5 billion by 2015 and $10 billion by 2018. In the first six months of 2013, the two countries’ two-way trade reached $2.1 billion. The two sides’ relevant ministries and agencies should apply policies that offer favorable conditions for businesses to operate in either country. President Yudhoyono and his Vietnamese counterpart agreed to strengthen the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on Fishing and Sea-related Issues to tap the potential of bilateral cooperation in this field and to deal with issues relating to fishermen and fishing boats that encroach on the territorial waters of each side. The two leaders also agreed that Vietnam and Indonesia will negotiate to sign rules on joint patrols between the two countries’ naval forces in contiguous waters, helping maintain peace and security at sea. President Sang affirmed Vietnam’s support for Indonesia’s Chairmanship of APEC 2013, expressing its wish that Indonesia will back Vietnam to host APEC 2017. He and his Indonesian counterpart also agreed to contribute efforts to the building of an ASEAN Community by 2015. Regarding East Sea-related issues, the two leaders shared the view that all disputes must be solved by peaceful means on the basis of respecting international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and finalizing a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC). The Vietnamese president and his Indonesian counterpart expressed their support for ASEAN's Six-Point Principles on the East Sea and applauded the Joint Statement of the 15th ASEAN-China Summit on the 10th anniversary of the DOC. After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of many cooperation agreements in various fields,  including finance, agriculture, energy,  extradition, and legal assistance.