21 March 2016 – Philippine Ambassador to Indonesia Maria Lumen Isleta called on Executive Director Philips Vermonte, the new head of the Indonesian think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) today at the CSIS Office. Executive Director Vermonte replaced Mr. Rizal Sukma, who was appointed as Indonesian Ambassador to the United Kingdom in December 2015.

They had a candid discussion on a wide range of issues, including on Philippines-Indonesia bilateral relations and regional concerns. They also looked into possible collaborations between the Embassy and CSIS in the future.

While CSIS is an independent entity, it provides policy recommendations for the Indonesian Government on both domestic and foreign policy issues.  It ranks among the Top 50 think tanks internationally and is the only Southeast Asian organization in the Top 50 of the 2015 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report of the University of Pennsylvania’s Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program. END