VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Den Haag, 5 April 2019: “Palm oil issue holds significance interest for Indonesia, especially for the country’s poverty alleviation efforts. For Indonesia, palm oil issue is not a mere sustainability concern, but it also correlates with the 2030 Agenda of Sustainable Development Goals,” stated Indonesian Foreign Minister, Retno L.P. Marsudi, during bilateral meeting with Dutch Foreign Minister, Stephanus (Stef) Blok in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands on 5 April 2019.

In the meeting, FM Marsudi expressed her disappointment towards the adoption of the discriminatory Draft Delegated Act that classifies palm oil as a high risk Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) vegetable oil by the European Commission. Further, she stated that a balanced discussion on the palm oil issues is highly necessary.   Other than palm oil, the two ministers also discussed various other issues within the bilateral framework between the two countries. FM Marsudi also shared about various human rights achievements in Indonesia. 

Besides, both Foreign Ministers discussed several issues within multilateral framework, including the agenda of Indonesian presidency for the UN Security Council in May 2019. In this regard, FM Marsudi invited Minister Blok to attend one of the open debates of UN Security Council in New York during the period of Indonesian presidency. (mofa)