Indonesia, EU to expedite IEU-CEPA negotiations
Antara News - 21 December 2022
Indonesia, EU to expedite IEU-CEPA negotiations
Indonesia and the European Union (EU) agreed to accelerate the Indonesia-EU Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) negotiations, marked by the successful completion of the substance of financial services arrangements under the services trade framework.
Moreover, Indonesia and EU also made progress in discussing various issues, especially concerning the origin of goods and technical barriers to trade in the 12th round of the IEU-CEPA.
"The 12th round of negotiations is the first full round after the last meeting in November 2021. However, the Indonesian and EU delegations are committed to accelerating negotiations according to instructions from the presidents of the two countries," the Indonesian Trade Ministry’s Director of Bilateral Negotiations, Johni Martha, noted in a statement here on Tuesday.
Heading the Indonesian Negotiating Group, Martha chaired the negotiations jointly with Filip Deraedt from the European Commission as chair of the EU Negotiating Group.
The 12th round discussed 15 negotiating issues : trade in goods ; terms of origin of goods ; trade security instruments ; trade technical barriers ; excise and trade facilitation ; and trade in services ; investment ; investment dispute resolution ; government procurement ; trade and sustainable development ; transparency and good regulatory practice ; mutual administrative assistance ; dispute resolution ; institutional provisions ; and economic cooperation and capacity building.
During a bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, on Nov 14, 2022, President Joko Widodo and European Commission President Ursula von Der Leyen expressed hope for progress in the IEU-CEPA negotiations.
Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan and Executive Vice President/European Commissioner (EVP) for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis also pushed for negotiations to be completed and implemented at the earliest.
"Next year, we are planning four rounds of negotiations, with the hope of achieving substantial progress and agreements," Martha stated.
Launched on July 18, 2016, the IEU-CEPA negotiations have taken place in 11 rounds, both in person and virtually. The 13th round is planned for early February 2023 in Indonesia.
Total trade between Indonesia and the EU in 2021 was recorded at US$29.1 billion. Indonesia’s exports to the EU were recorded at US$18 billion, while Indonesia’s imports from the EU were valued at US$11.1 billion.
Indonesia’s main export commodities to the EU in 2021 were palm oil and its fractions ; industrial monocarboxylic fatty acids ; footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastic, leather, or composition leather with leather upper ; footwear with outer soles of rubber, plastic, leather, or composition leather with upper of a textile material ; as well as natural rubber.
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s main imports from the EU in 2021 were vaccines ; drugs ; recovered (waste and scrap) paper or paperboard ; milk and cream ; and instruments and apparatus used in medical, surgical, dental, or veterinary sciences.
