Indonesia Affirms Commitment to Strengthening BRICS

Trade Minister Budi Santoso stated that BRICS trade ministers have agreed on most substantive issues during the BRICS Trade Ministers’ Meeting (TMM), although a joint statement was not finalised. Speaking at the closing session in Jaipur, India, on Friday (7/8), Minister Budi emphasised Indonesia’s commitment to strengthening a fair, inclusive, open, and rules-based multilateral trading system. “Indonesia fully supports various concrete BRICS initiatives to strengthen trade, from facilitating financing access for MSMEs, building more resilient supply chains, to encouraging digital transformation. This is important to create more inclusive and sustainable economic growth,” he said. Minister Budi also proposed the establishment of an Indonesia-Mercosur Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) to Brazil as a pragmatic step to strengthen trade in the Latin American region. He stressed the need for BRICS members to reinforce concrete economic cooperation amid increasing global challenges to safeguard international trade stability.