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.
Indonesia accuses EU of 'regulatory imperialism' with deforestation law
Indonesia will continue negotiations for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) with the bloc, alongside separate consultations to resolve disputes on the EU's deforestation rules, Airlangga Hartarto, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs told Reuters.
Change Size
Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto stands on the podium, looking at the materials he is about to present on May 5, 2023. (The Jakarta Post/Deni Ghifari)
I
ndonesia sees the European Union as conducting "regulatory imperialism" with its new deforestation law, but both sides would still engage in talks on a free trade deal, a senior minister said on Thursday.
Indonesia will continue negotiations for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) with the bloc, alongside separate consultations to resolve disputes on the EU's deforestation rules, Airlangga Hartarto, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs told Reuters.
Jakarta wants to close a deal on the FTA soon after seven years of deliberations, Airlangga said, but stressed Indonesia "can wait another seven years" if the EU was unwilling to recognise existing export standards, like those on sustainable palm oil and wood products, under the deforestation rules.
"We're discussing trade facilitation ... But in parallel, they're building walls. This is not fair," said Airlangga, who raised the issue in Brussels last week together with Malaysia's deputy prime minister.
Airlangga cited ongoing disputes with the EU, including its complaint at the World Trade Organization (WTO) over Indonesia's nickel ore export ban and a separate WTO case that Indonesia filed over the EU's phasing out of palm oil as biofuels' feedstock.
The bloc's carbon tax plans could also hit Indonesian nickel products, Airlangga said, describing EU rules as "regulatory imperialism".
A European Commission spokesperson said the EU was aware of the deforestation law concerns and assured the rules would not be discriminatory or used as disguised trade restrictions.
