The International Trade Secretary today launched top-level trade
discussions in Jakarta as part of a visit to the Indo-Pacific
region.
joined her
counterpart, Trade Minister Mohammed Lutfi, in the Indonesian
capital to host the first ever UK-Indonesia Joint Economic and
Trade Committee (JETCO) before she heads on to Japan and
Singapore.
The UK and Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, committed
to enhancing our trading relationship and boosting the existing
£2.6 billion in bilateral trade. It comes as Indonesia prepares
to host the G20 leaders’ summit later this year.
Trevelyan also sat down with the Secretary General of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Dato Lim Jock
Hoi, for the first meeting since the UK became the bloc’s 11th
Dialogue Partner, the first nation to achieve that status in 25
years.
After the Indonesia leg of her trip, Trevelyan is moving on to
visit counterparts in Japan and Singapore in a visit designed to
deepen and strengthen ties to the region as part of the UK’s
strategic Indo-Pacific tilt.
The visit comes days after the UK moved into the second and final
stage of joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership CPTPP free trade
area worth £8.4 trillion in GDP.
International Trade Secretary said:
This trip marks an exciting milestone in the UK’s strategic tilt
to the Indo-Pacific. We have made significant progress on joining
CPTPP, a trade bloc worth over £8 trillion. We are also looking
at what is on the horizon to deepen trade links with Indonesia
and other nations in the Indo-Pacific.
These talks are an opportunity to advance our shared goals, such
as stepping up green trade in areas like hydrogen. Trade in the
industries of the future will provide opportunities for growth
and high-quality jobs across the UK’s industrial heartlands,
helping us level up right across the country.
While in Indonesia, Trevelyan met Luhut Pandjaitan, Minister of
Investment and Maritime Affairs, and the Governor of Jakarta,
Anies Baswedan, to discuss possibilities for clean growth
collaboration, such as partnering on Jakarta Net Zero.
She also promoted the UK’s rail expertise as she visits Jakarta
Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), which British firms have helped to
design. She highlighted how closer trade ties and support from UK
Export Finance could help UK businesses bidding for multi-million
pound contracts on Indonesian infrastructure projects, with £4
billion of financial support available for the country.
As the world’s fourth largest country by population and this
year’s G20 president, the visit was also an opportunity to
emphasise the strategic importance of Indonesia and address wider
UK priorities such as WTO reform.
The Trade Secretary will fly to Tokyo on Thursday.
