Indonesia And The European Union Agree To Acceleration Of I-EU CEPA Negotiations

JAKARTA - Indonesia and the European Union (EU) have succeeded in completing substantially the arrangement of financial services under the framework of service trading, after completing the 12th round of Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA) negotiations. The 12th round of the I-EU CEPA negotiations will be held from 12 to 16 December 2022.

Director of Bilateral Negotiations at the Ministry of Trade Johni Martha said that in these negotiations also made progress in discussing various issues, especially in the field of provisions on the origin of goods and technical barriers to trade.

"The 12th round of negotiations is the first full round after the last meeting in November 2021. However, the Indonesian Delegation and the EU are committed to accelerating negotiations according to the instructions of the Presidents of the two countries," he said in an official statement, Monday, December 19.

Johni led the negotiations as Chairman of the Indonesian Negotiating Group with Filip Deraedt of the European Commission as Chairman of the EU Negotiation Group.

In the 12th round there are 15 issues of trading, namely trade in goods; provisions of the origin of goods; trade security instruments; technical barriers to trade; excise and trade facilitation; trade in services; investment; settlement of investment disputes and government procurement.

Then, trade and sustainable development; transparency and good regulatory practice; mutual administrative assistance; dispute resolution; institutional provisions; as well as economic cooperation and capacity building. To that end, all heads of working groups in each issue are asked to set targets at each next round so that the IEU CEPA can achieve significant progress and be completed. "Next year we plan four rounds of negotiations in the hope that substantial progress and agreement can be achieved," continued Johni.

As is known, Indonesian President Joko Widodo and European Commission President Ursula von Der Leyen expect progress in the I-EU CEPA Negotiation at a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit on November 14, 2022 in Bali.

Previously, the Indonesian Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan and the Executive Vice President/European Commissioner (EVP) for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis also encouraged negotiations to be immediately completed and implemented.

Since its launch on July 18, 2016, the I-EU CEPA negotiations have been going on for 11 rounds both directly and virtually. The 13th round is planned for early February 2023 in Indonesia.

The total trade between Indonesia and the EU in 2021 was recorded at 29.1 billion US dollars.

During that period, Indonesia's exports to the EU were recorded at 18 billion US dollars while Indonesia's imports from the EU amounted to 11.1 billion US dollars.

Indonesia's mainstay export commodities to the EU in 2021 are palm oil and its fractions; industrial monocarboxylate fatty acids; footwear with rubber outer soles, plastics, same skin, or compositional skin with the top of the skin material; footwear with rubber sol, plastic, same skin, or compositional skin with the top of the textile material; as well as natural rubber.

Meanwhile, Indonesia's main imports from the EU in 2021 are vaccines; recovered paper or cardboard paper (remaining and screening); milk and cream; as well as instruments and equipment used in medical science, surgery, dental care or animal medicine.