TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Brexit won't affect Indonesian-British relations: Minister

Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sat, June 25, 2016

Share This Article

Change Size

Brexit won't affect Indonesian-British relations: Minister Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi speaks to journalists at the Foreign Ministry building in Jakarta. (The Jakarta Post/-)

B

ritain’s exit from the EU will not affect bilateral relations with Indonesia, as it is in the common interest of both countries to continue to foster cooperation in strategic areas, a minister has said.

Any political and economic impact would only begin to show after approximately two years since an extensive process still had to finalize Britian’s withdrawal from the trading bloc, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said in response to the UK's historic referendum on June 24.

"The results from the referendum would not take effect immediately because article 50 of the EU Treaty must be initiated before negotiations between Britain and the EU would take place to settle on a withdrawal agreement," Retno said in a statement released on Friday.

She said the economic impact would have to be observed from the results of the aforementioned withdrawal agreement, as it would determine the direction of relations between the UK and the EU, since a number of partnerships between both parties also involve Indonesia, such as the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) licensing initiative.

Britain has been a strategic partner to Indonesia since 2012, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry. Trade value between both countries reached US$ 2.35 billion in 2015, while investment from Britain in Indonesia reached $503.2 million in the same year. According to ministry data, as many as 269,798 tourists from Britain visited Indonesia in 2015.  (bbn) 

{

Your Opinion Counts

Your thoughts matter - share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.