Indonesia and the European Union are expected to conclude talks on an economic cooperation agreement that would ease trade barriers this month, Jakarta's top economy minister said on Saturday.
Southeast Asia's largest economy and the 27-nation European bloc have been negotiating since 2016 to reach a deal that is expected to boost trade and investment.
Ties have been damaged by a proposed ban on EU imports of deforestation-related products, angering Indonesia as a major palm oil exporter.
However, Jakarta's chief economy minister, Airlangga Hartarto, said at an online briefing on Saturday that talks were close to completion.
“We have already reached the final round. This means that we have resolved almost all issues,” Airlangga told reporters.
In an earlier statement, he said Indonesia and the EU would announce the conclusion of negotiations by the end of June.
Airlangga did not disclose any agreements that might be part of the deal.
He said the next step would be a process to draft a legal document, which would need to be completed in a “short time frame” before both sides could ratify the agreement.
According to Airlangga, one of the main points of the agreement is the elimination of non-tariff barriers and the reduction of tariffs in order to make their markets more accessible to each other.
“The strategic advantage for Indonesia is the opening of the European market, which has so far been subject to relatively higher tariffs and import duties compared to our neighboring countries,” he said.
The EU will also grant Indonesia “special treatment” for its key exports, including potentially forest products, Airlangga said, without elaborating.
The European bloc is Indonesia's fifth-largest trading partner, with bilateral trade between the two reaching US$30.1 billion last year, according to Airlangga.
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