Singapore and Indonesia will begin discussions over a “green lane” for essential travel between the two countries.
Noting the “strong business links” between the neighbours, Singapore’s foreign affairs ministry says the green lane should “allow for essential travel to gradually resume in a manner that would safeguard public health and safety in both countries”. No further details were given, however.
The move came after Indonesian foreign affairs minister Retno Marsudi visited the city-state on 25 August, where she met her Singaporean counterpart and the country’s prime minister.
Singapore currently has green lane agreements with China and Malaysia, while Indonesia has similar arrangements with China, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.
Both countries also have ongoing travel restrictions in place, in an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Indonesia is one of Singapore’s top source markets for visitor arrivals and tourist receipts.
Cirium schedules data shows that in January — before travel restrictions came into force — there were air links between Singapore and 13 Indonesian cities.
Singapore-Jakarta flights took the lion’s share — at slightly more than half — in terms of frequency and seat capacity. This was followed by Singapore-Denpasar Bali and Singapore-Surabaya in second and third place, respectively.
By carrier, Singapore Airlines (SIA) had the most flight frequencies between the two countries, followed by Indonesia AirAsia and Garuda Indonesia.
SIA also offered the highest seat capacity, and the highest ASKs, among all carriers. This was followed by Indonesia AirAsia and Garuda in second and third place, respectively.
