- Negotiations
In July 2005, Japan and Indonesia formally began negotiations on a bilateral free trade and economic agreement. Japan has more investment tied up in Indonesia than in any other Southeast Asian country. And Tokyo is particularly concerned about access to Indonesia’s natural resources, especially gas and oil. Indonesia is currently Japan’s largest supplier of liquefied natural gas.
The two governments aimed to reach a deal by the end of 2006 but it took two years. The pact was signed on 20 August 2007 and went into effect on 1 July 2008. As with JPEPA, a small number of Indonesian nurses and healthcare workers are allowed into Japan to work temporarily under the agreement, provided they pass Japanese language examinations.
last update: May 2012
Photo: Infernal Elf / CC BY-NC 2.0
17-Feb-2006
Jakarta Post
Indonesian trade negotiators are pushing their Japanese counterparts to allow the country’s workers more access to Japan’s labor market.
1-Feb-2006
ZNet
The late January visit to Tokyo by Indonesian Vice President Muhammad Jusuf Kalla was full of surprises, just as the two nations announced their expectations that a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) would be signed before the end of 2006.
25-Jan-2006
Kyodo
Japan and Indonesia agreed Wednesday to accelerate ongoing bilateral talks aimed at sealing a free trade accord, with the goal of striking a basic accord by mid-2006 at earliest, a Japanese official said.
23-Dec-2005
Jakarta Post
Indonesia could lose US$400 million in potential export revenues per year if it does not establish a free trade agreement (FTA) with Japan, while most other ASEAN members have done so to complement the region’s own free market in 2010, a study shows.
19-Oct-2005
Asia Times
The Indonesian government expects Japan’s investment and the value of export by Japanese companies in Indonesia to double in the coming five years, as the first-round negotiation between the Indonesian and Japanese governments on the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) has run smoothly.
12-Oct-2005
Jakarta Post
Japan and Indonesia resumed free trade agreement (FTA) talks in Tokyo Tuesday and hope to conclude an agreement within two years, government officials said.
19-Jul-2005
Jakarta Post
Japan and Indonesia are focusing their series of negotiations on setting up an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) to strengthen cooperation in trade, investment and intellectual property rights, the Indonesian Minister of Trade says.
17-Jul-2005
Kazinform
Indonesia and Japan ended the first round of negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement Friday, aimed at establishing a new partnership, and agreed to hold the talks every two months.
15-Jul-2005
Xinhua
Under an agreement inked with Japan during Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s visit to Tokyo in June, senior officials from the two nations are to open the first round of free trade talks here on Thursday.
7-Jul-2005
Xinhua
Indonesia and Japan will begin negotiation of Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) on July 14 in Jakarta.