Such request was delivered by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) to the Czech Republic Senate delegation who met him at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday.
"The message conveyed was a request for support for Indonesian palm oil products, because this issue is related to 17 million Indonesian farmers who earn a living from palm oil industry," Deputy Foreign Minister A.M. Fachir, who accompanied the president during the meeting, told the press.
Responding to such request, the Czech Republic Senate delegation, comprising Chair of the Czech Republic Senate Milan Stech, Senator Tomas Grulich, Senator Ludek Jenista, Senator Hassan Mezian, Senator Lumir Kantor, and Senator Radko Martinek, said they do not have any problem related to Indonesian palm oil products.
Bringing along representatives from the Czech Chamber of Commerce, including its Deputy Chair Michael Steffi, the Czech delegation is expected to also support the acceleration of the implementation of the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA).
The sixth round of the I-EU CEPA negotiations will be held in Indonesia in October 2018.
The agreement is expected to boost trade growth between Indonesia and European countries, considering that EU is a strategic trading partner for Indonesia, with total trade between the two countries in 2017 amounting to US$29 billion.
Meanwhile, the Czech Senate expressed the need for increased energy cooperation as currently Czech is surplus in energy.
"They also conveyed the opportunity for cooperation in the automotive field, and the President openly said that Indonesia would want to work together in automotive development or (in the fields that are) leading to industry 4.0," Fachir noted.
The bilateral trade volume between Indonesia and the Czech Republic reached $260 million, with a deficit in Indonesia`s side.
"That is why they brought businessmen here to further enhance cooperation," Fachir concluded.
Reporting by Agus Salim
Editing by Yashinta Difa Pramudyani
Reporter: Agus Salim
Editor: Bustanuddin
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