US says Indonesia backtracking on trade pledges as Trump deal risks falling flat
US official Jamieson Greer will hold talks with Indonesian minister Airlangga Hartarto to salvage the pact signed in July
Greer will speak to Airlangga Hartarto, the Indonesian coordinating minister for economic affairs, in an effort to revive a deal struck in July that would see US tariffs on Indonesian goods reduced from a threatened 32 per cent to 19 per cent in exchange for a series of concessions.
But US officials now believe Jakarta is reneging on agreements to eliminate non-tariff barriers on American industrial and agricultural exports as well as digital trade issues, the newspaper reported.
Representatives for the White House and US Trade Representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday night.
An Indonesian official at the coordinating ministry for economic affairs said that the dynamics of the tariff negotiation process were normal, adding that Jakarta hoped to reach a mutually beneficial agreement soon.
Under the deal announced in July, Indonesia announced plans to purchase some US$19 billion in American products, led by 50 Boeing jets, and erase duties on imports from the US.