Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi visited Indonesia on Tuesday and inked a preferential trade pact to boost economic ties.
Joko Widodo, addressing after the signing as webcast online by his cabinet secretariat, believed the pact “would increase trade between Indonesia and Iran” but did not elaborate.
Raisi’s visit comes after Iranian security forces violently repressed protests against the clerical class after the September death of a Kurdish woman in morality police detention.
Iran faces sweeping sanctions for its nuclear program and human rights abuses from several nations, including the US.
After US sanctions, Indonesia-Iran trade plummeted from $715.5 million to $141.6 million in 2019.
Indonesia’s commerce ministry reported a $200 million surplus in two-way trade between the nations at $250 million.
On Monday, commerce ministry official Djatmiko Bris Witjaksono said Indonesia wants to increase trade with Iran and its neighbors.
“Iran could be a gateway to the surrounding region, such as Central Asia… or even to Turkey because we do not have any trade deal with Turkey yet,” he said.
Under Monday’s accord, Iran would provide Indonesia more access to processed food, medicines, textiles, palm oil, coffee, and tea. At the same time, Indonesia would decrease tariffs on Iran’s oil, chemical, metal, and dairy products.
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