VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto along with the United States Ambassador to Indonesia, Sung Kim discussed various matters from improving the trade balance to vaccination through a virtual meeting. The trade value between Indonesia and the United States is currently around US$30 billion dollars, smaller than the bilateral trade between the United States and other ASEAN countries.

Minister Airlangga Hartarto in his statement in Jakarta, Thursday (8/7) said that Indonesia could increase the value of trade by two or three times, considering that Indonesia is the largest economy in ASEAN. There is plenty of room for trade between the two countries.

Meanwhile, the United States Ambassador to Indonesia, Sung Kim hopes that economic relations, including in the fields of trade and investment, between the two countries will continue to grow. There are various investment prospects from US companies that are attracted to Indonesia.

In addition, Ambassador Kim stated, the United States government expressed concern over the difficult times faced by Indonesia due to the Covid-19 pandemic and would donate vaccines to help deal with the pandemic in Indonesia. According to Ambassador Sung Kim, the United States government has donated 4 million doses of the Moderna vaccine along with other technical and medical assistance, as well as oxygen. The Indonesian government also appreciates the support and supply of the Moderna vaccine from the United States.

Minister Airlangga Hartarto, who is also the Chairman of the Committee for Handling COVID-19 and the National Economic Recovery, further said that vaccine support could help and increase the level of confidence of health workers as front-liners. He added that in serving the community's need for medical care during the pandemic, the government uses health equipment both from within the country and import, supported by relaxation of import duties.

The virtual meeting also discussed prospects for renewable energy cooperation. Minister Airlangga also explained that various potential renewable energy resources, such as solar, wind and geothermal exist in Indonesia. The government is also encouraging the use of solar panels on several islands, such as Batam and Bintan through the solar program, to increase the market demand for solar panels. Minister Airlangga emphasized that Indonesia is open to cooperation with the United States to accelerate the transition to renewable energy in Indonesia.