The meeting between President Jokowi and Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, at the Presidential Palace, Bogor, Monday (9/1/2023), resulted in several agreements, one of which was a declaration of cooperation between the two countries to fight palm oil discrimination.
President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said Indonesia and Malaysia agreed to work together through the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) to combat discrimination against palm oil.
“We also agreed to work together through the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries CPOPC to increase the market for palm oil and fight discrimination against palm oil,” said Jokowi broadcast on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel, Monday. Jokowi said Indonesia and Malaysia would also cooperate in increasing the palm oil market.
Previously it was reported, the Government of Indonesia through the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Indonesia (PTRI) in Geneva, Switzerland officially filed a lawsuit against the European Union (EU) at the World Trade Organization (WTO), on December 9, 2019. The lawsuit was filed against the Renewable Energy Directive II (RED II) policy. ) and EU Delegated Regulation. These policies are considered to discriminate against Indonesian palm oil products.
“Indonesia officially sent a Request for Consultation on December 9, 2019, to the EU as an initial initiation stage in a lawsuit. This decision was made after holding domestic meetings with palm oil product associations and business actors and after going through scientific studies, as well as consultations with all sector stakeholders. palm oil and its derivatives” said Trade Minister Agus Suparmanto in a written statement
According to the Minister of Trade, this lawsuit was made as a form of the Government of Indonesia’s seriousness in fighting discrimination by the EU through the RED II policy and Delegated Regulation.
These policies are considered to discriminate against palm oil products because they limit market access to palm oil and palm oil-based biofuels. This discrimination harms exports of Indonesian palm oil products to the EU market.
As previously reported, The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Anwar Ibrahim, visited Indonesia and was warmly welcomed by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi). The second meeting on Monday (9/1) simultaneously discussed several matters, including investment and development of the New Capital.
Jokowi also revealed that in the meeting with Anwar Ibrahim, he conveyed several things. First, he welcomed the interest of Malaysian investors in the construction of the new nation’s capital the Nusantara.
“A total of 11 letters of intent have been signed by the Malaysian private sector and submitted to the IKN authorities engaged in electronics, health, waste management, construction, and property. In addition, there are also several MOUs in the field of shipping, export-import financing, green energy, development of the battery industry, and others that have also been signed,” he said.
