Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita pointed out that confirmation of the GR-IJEPA settlement by President Joko Widodo and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka, last weekend, was important and symbolic for trade relations.
"Hence, I am pleased and proud to inform that the two leaders, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, confirmed that GR-IJEPA has been completed," Lukita noted in a statement received in Jakarta on Tuesday.
At the meeting, both leaders called on the delegates to complete the amendment protocol in accordance with the recommendations. Furthermore, both leaders remained committed to completing negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in 2019.
Lukita elaborated that the two countries had agreed to the announcement of the GR-IJEPA settlement by the end of June 2019 by producing several recommendations.
For Indonesia, the completion of GR-IJEPA demonstrates the rising significance of countries in the world to intensify their economic relations in the midst of the trade frictions in the world today.
The GR-IJEPA encompasses the issues of goods trade, service trade, investment, labor movement (MNP), cooperation, procurement of government goods/services, provisions of origin, improvement of the business climate, and intellectual property.
Lukita stated that the comprehensive scope of the agreement is a testament to both nations' shared resolve to boost economic relations to a higher level.
It will also help to modernize the economies of Indonesia and Japan, taking into account that they can complement one another, so that they can become mutually beneficial partners.
"In addition to market access in the field of goods and services, one of the benefits to be derived from IJEPA is industrial sector cooperation through the New Manufacturing Industry Development Center (New MIDEC). For instance, in the fields of automotive, electronics, food, beverage, textile, and other programs that are mutually beneficial," Lukita explained.
Alternate Chairman of the Indonesian Negotiator for GR-IJEPA Ni Made Ayu Marthini stated that the Indonesian and Japanese delegates remain committed to completing the protocol changes from the review before the end of 2019.
"Delegations of the two countries remain committed to completing the protocol amendments this year, as businesspersons from both countries have been waiting to encourage trade and investment between Japan and Indonesia," she concluded.
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Translator: Sella Panduarsa Gareta/Yashint
Editor: Sri Haryati
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