President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono advises regional leaders on how to create a welcoming investment environment for foreign direct capital inflows.

Speaking at the 2006 “Forum Kerja Sama Antar Pemerintah Daerah Provinsi Kepulauan” on Bintan island, Riau province, and accompanied by Economy minister Boediono, Security minister Widodo AS, Trade minister Mari Elka Pangestu, Industry minister Fahmi Idris, and Labour minister Erman Suparno, SBY asked that provincial and island leaders help prove to the world that Indonesia was open to foreign direct investment and capital.

Capital, said the president, is not nationalistic, regardless of where it is planted. But each country had to work hard to attract, to convince international investors that, for example, Indonesia was the right place to invest.

He mentioned the name of Vladimir Putin saying that the Russian president works hard to attract capital to his country. Also the president of Vietnam, and many other leaders, he said.

Perhaps in reference to Vietnam, China, and India, he said that if Indonesia was proven to have been outperformed by certain countries in wooing investors then the nation should look hard at itself and not blame its competitors. Yudhoyono went on to say that it was better to avoid confrontations with competitor countries and learn from their successes.