Minister Of Trade Budi Calls IEU CEPA And FTA RI With Europe And Eurasia Completed In 2025

JAKARTA - Minister of Trade (Mendag) Budi Santoso said the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Indonesia-EU CEPA) and Indonesia-Erepurian Economic Union Free Trade Area (I-EAEU FTA) negotiations had shown rapid progress with a complete target of completion by 2025.

According to him, these two crucial agreements will open and increase the market access of Indonesian products to Europe and Eurasia.

"We are targeting the two agreements to be completed this year. The Ministry of Trade, which is the lead in this negotiation, will ensure the completion of the negotiations so that the benefits can be felt by business actors and the community in general," Budi said as quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, June 10.

Indonesia-EU CEPA negotiations were launched on July 18, 2016. Negotiations have been going on for nine years with the 19th round taking place on July 1-5, 2024 in Bogor, West Java.

Meanwhile, the Indonesia-EAEU FTA negotiations were launched on December 5, 2022, with the 4th round having been held on March 18--20 2024 in Yerevan, Armenia.

Budi said that Indonesia-EU CEPA and Indonesia-EAEU FTA will give Indonesia a competitive advantage over other countries and pave the way for better economic growth.

Through Indonesia-EU CEPA and Indonesia-EAEU FTA, access to the market of Indonesia's leading products with large markets to the EU region and the Eurasian Economic Union will increase.

The two agreements also have the potential to diversify Indonesia's export market and become an alternative for products affected by the United States tariff policy.

Furthermore, the two agreements will focus on labor-intensive manufacturing, agriculture, and fishery products.

"Indonesia-EU CEPA and Indonesia-EAEU FTA will reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers for a number of Indonesian export products, such as palm oil, agricultural products, textiles, and electronics so that they can be more competitive," he explained.

The two agreements, said Budi, were comprehensive and inclusive. The issues include investment, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and sustainability.

Investment will contribute significantly to the competitiveness, development of technology in the domestic industry, downstreaming, and increasing the added value of Indonesian export products.

He hopes that investment in Indonesia in the industrial sector with advanced technology will increase through the two agreements.