Roeslani stated that the CEPA between Indonesia and the European Union will create investment opportunities from the 27 EU member countries and give Indonesia greater access to the EU market.
"We hope to receive more positive responses from the investment sector. Most investments coming into Indonesia have been from the Netherlands. French companies, such as L'Oreal, have already made some other investments," he noted in a statement on Sunday, as quoted from a video recording on Monday.
He remarked that the economic agreement is also expected to increase trade between the two parties, from US$30 billion to US$60 billion.
Moreover, the comprehensive economic agreement will offer an alternative market for Indonesia, especially amid current geopolitical and geoeconomic uncertainties, the minister noted.
"Amid this increasing geopolitical and geoeconomic uncertainty, we are expanding and diversifying our markets. There will be 27 EU countries ratifying this agreement," he stated.
President Prabowo Subianto announced the completion of the I-EU CEPA negotiations during a press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the European Commission Office in Berlaymont Building, Brussels, on Sunday.
Indonesia and the European Union have been negotiating the terms of cooperation for the CEPA for about a decade.
"After 10 years of negotiations, we have finalized the Comprehensive Economic Agreement (CEPA), which is essentially a free market agreement. We have reached many agreements, aimed at accommodating each other's economic interests, and we have found that these interests are mutually beneficial," the president stated at the press conference.
This achievement was positively received by President von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, two EU leaders whom President Prabowo met in Brussels on Sunday. The two meetings were part of his overseas visit to Brussels that began Saturday (July 12).
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Translator: Genta Tenri M, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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