Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto has instructed his negotiation team to use the best possible means to reach a tariff agreement with the United States while safeguarding national interests.
This was conveyed by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto in Jakarta on Tuesday.
“The President instructed us to negotiate in the best possible way for the sake of national interest,” he said.
Hartarto is leading the team tasked with negotiating the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US government on Indonesian exports. The team also includes Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and Foreign Minister Sugiono.
The negotiations are scheduled to take place in Washington, DC, from April 16 to 23.
Hartarto noted that Minister Sugiono had arrived in the US earlier and met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
In addition to joining the negotiations, Minister Indrawati will attend the Spring Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), which will be held in Washington from April 21 to 26.
On Monday, Hartarto and National Economic Council (DEN) Chairperson Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan held a video conference with US Secretary of Commerce Howard W. Lutnick. They discussed global issues and agreed to continue discussions in Washington.
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“We will meet with several parties, including the USTR (Office of the US Trade Representative), the US Treasury Secretary, as well as like-minded organizations such as the US-ASEAN Business Council, USINDO, and various business associations in Washington,” Hartarto added.
On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on numerous countries, including Indonesia, which now faces a 32 percent tariff.
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Other ASEAN countries have been affected as well: the Philippines faces a 17 percent tariff, Singapore 10 percent, Malaysia 24 percent, Cambodia 49 percent, Thailand 36 percent, and Vietnam 46 percent.
However, on April 9, Trump announced a 90-day pause on the policy’s implementation for most countries, excluding China. Indonesia is among the countries granted the full three-month reprieve.
