On Tuesday signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement between Indonesia and EU (CEPA) extends the possibilities of Europeans to trade with another large market And it opens the Union doors for similar agreements with other countries of the Association of Southeast Asian countries (Asean). For TASR, this was confirmed by the European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič.
- The EU and Indonesia signed a significant CEPA trade agreement.
- The agreement extends business opportunities and sector investments.
- Specific industries include electric vehicles and pharmaceuticals.
- The EU plans further agreements with the countries of Southeast Asia.
- The agreement provides social and ecological standards, including deforestation.
The Commissioner recalled that this is the third EU agreement with Asean – after Singapore and Vietnam. The agreement will open the door to investments in strategic sectors such as electric vehicles, electronics and the pharmaceutical industry. He stated that, like the EU, countries from other frequent worlds are looking for responsible business partners, and therefore there is now great interest in the EU commercial agreements.
“Only this year we have submitted an agreement with Mercosur, Mexico, now with Indonesia. These are all huge countries. We will continue with the countries of Asean, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand,” He stated with reference to the negotiations awaiting him on Wednesday in Malaysia, where after many years of the EU Commissioner for Trade, he will meet the ASEAN departmental partners. “We continue negotiations with the Gulf countries, where the most advanced ones are those with the associated Arab Emirates,” explained,
He pointed out that this year’s business agreements for the EU mean the huge potential of goods and services consumers – Mercosur around 400 million inhabitants, Indonesia over 280 million, Mexico around 140 million. “These are huge markets and I am glad that we have managed to complete the negotiations and start the ratification process. It will make life easier and provide greater stability and predictability to our exporters,” bequeathed.
He admitted that there may be some concerns on the side of Europeans even in CEPA, but at the same time he pointed out that This is a full -fledged and versatile agreement that ensures that the EU does not lose the sustainability of its growththat social and working standards will also be respected by the Paris climate agreement, including environmental protection and preventing deforestation.
When asked TASR, whether CEPA has the potential to balance some business relations with China, Šefčovič replied that “We are all looking for reliable and predictable partners”. Specified that if the free trade agreement is concluded with someone, then It is not just about mutual disturbance of customs, but also about establishing rules on how to organize and guarantee mutual exportwhat license fees will be introduced or restricted and certainty is provided to investors.
“I know that Indonesia has a great interest in investing from the EU. So far we have invested over € 25 billion there. European companies are ready to invest in areas where we suffer from addictions. These are critical minerals. From the point of view of diversification, both in terms of goods, and in terms of export options, this is a breakthrough agreement, ”he said.
He described his tour of the countries of Southeast Asia as a strong impulse for this regionThat the EU wants to work with them closer, better and not only entrepreneurs, but also the wider public understand that there is unused potential for business contacts.
