Indonesia Proposes Balanced Trade Package to U.S. Targeting Five Strategic Benefits
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JAKARTA, investortrust.id – Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto says Indonesia offers the United States a fair and mutually beneficial trade package built around five strategic advantages, as negotiations over Washington’s tariff policy intensify.
The proposal—outlined on Friday, Apr. 25, 2025, during an online briefing that followed face-to-face talks in Washington led by Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent—was designed to safeguard Indonesia’s national interests while responding to U.S. concerns.
“The offer was designed to keep the balance across at least five benefits,” Airlangga told reporters. The first objective, he said, was to secure energy supply and national energy resilience at a time of heightened geopolitical risk.
The second benefit aimed to expand Indonesia’s access to the U.S. market, “particularly through competitive tariffs on Indonesian exports,” he said.
Third, Indonesia sought regulatory reform to make it easier to trade and invest, thereby spurring job creation.
“The fourth benefit was to capture more value through cooperation in strategic-industry supply chains and critical minerals,” he noted.
Fifth, the government wanted access to knowledge and technology in sectors such as healthcare, agriculture and renewable energy, which it views as essential to long-term growth.
In parallel with bilateral talks, Indonesian officials canvassed private-sector views from the Semiconductor Industry Association, the US-ASEAN Business Council and the United States–Indonesia Society (USINDO). Airlangga and his team also met senior executives from Amazon.com Inc., Boeing Co., Microsoft Corp. and Google LLC to gauge corporate priorities and enlist support.
“Overall, the U.S. Government appreciated the strategy, approach and proposal put forward by Indonesia,” Airlangga said, describing the latest round of discussions as “constructive.” Further technical meetings were expected in coming weeks to refine tariff schedules and sector-specific commitments.