Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said his country wants a fair and equal relationship with the United States and will pursue diplomacy to address a 32% tariff rate imposed by President Donald Trump.
Prabowo spoke on Monday during a rice harvesting event in West Java.
“We will also open negotiations with America. We will say, we want a good relationship. We want a fair relationship. We want an equal relationship,” he said.
The Indonesian government has said it would pursue negotiations rather than retaliate against the US tariffs, and will send a high-level delegation to the United States.
DAILY POST reports that Indonesia is among six Southeast Asian countries that were slapped with high tariffs by the US President last week. The levies are set to take effect on April 9.
Prabowo's ministers have been working on a proposal to address the tariffs by offering to buy more US products such as cotton, wheat, oil and gas, as well as pledging to resolve non-tariff barriers and possible tax cuts on US goods.
The chief economic minister, Airlangga Hartarto, who will lead Indonesia's high-level delegation to the US, was said to have met with more than a hundred business associations on Monday to gather inputs.
After the meeting, the government reportedly came up with a plan to increase imports from the US, including buying components for an oil refinery project and reviewing the possibility to reduce a local content rule for US tech and communication firms.
According to the finance ministry, its fiscal posture is unchanged at the moment and it will try to maintain it amid the current situation.
