The Foreign Ministry’s Undersecretary for International Economic Negotiations and Integration, Ambassador Gabriel Martínez, and other Undersecretariat officials held a working meeting at Palacio San Martín with Djatmiko Witkasono, Director General of International Trade Negotiations at Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade. Witkasono is the head of a delegation of Indonesian officials currently visiting Argentina.
During the meeting, which was also attended by the Indonesian Ambassador to Argentina, Sulaiman Syarif, the officials discussed the possibility of boosting trade negotiations between Indonesia and MERCOSUR, launched in late 2021. Through these kinds of negotiations, Argentina seeks to deepen its integration into Asia’s value chains, as was the case with the recent execution of the MERCOSUR-Singapore Agreement.
Regarding the bilateral agenda, the parties highlighted the importance of the economic-trade relationship between both countries and the existing potential to increase and diversify trade exchange. Argentina’s interest in accessing the Indonesian beef and dairy markets was reaffirmed and the possibility of making progress in the fields of food and energy security was discussed.
For his part, the Indonesian Ambassador highlighted his country’s interest in discussing critical minerals with Argentina, including copper and lithium, which are essential for the development of batteries and electric cars. The participants agreed to hold a bilateral Joint Commission, during the first half of 2025 at the latest.
During the past three years, Argentina’s annual exports to Indonesia totalled an average of USD 1.7 billion, with a large surplus for our country. Total trade between both countries exceeded USD 2 billion.
