CZECH REPUBLIC EYES RAILROAD PROJECTS IN INDONESIA

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Sept 19 (Antara) - The Czech Republic has high technology and expertise in the construction of railway project, while Indonesia is now intensifying its infrastructure development, including railroads.          Hence, the Czech Republic during the visit of Czech Republic Parliament Senate President Milan Stech, is exploring the possibility of cooperation in the development of railway projects in Indonesia.        According to Industry Minister Airlangga Hartarto, the Czech Republic and Indonesia can cooperate not only in the railway project but also in other sectors. Therefore, both sides need to establish a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) to expand cooperation between the two countries.          "Some of our manufacturing products have the potential to penetrate the Czech market, including textiles and clothing, footwear, wooden-based furniture, as well as pulp and paper," he stated.           But more importantly, according to Hartarto, the Czech Republic has a rubber processing industry that is quite competitive, such as tire factories. Indonesia has a railroad industry that has been able to produce various components and railway infrastructure, for instance, rolling stock, rail tracks, and signaling systems.

INDONESIA, CZECH NEED CEPA TO FOSTER ECONOMIC TIES

by Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Sept 18 (Antara) - Indonesia and the Czech Republic need to establish a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to further boost economic ties between the two countries.          Although the Czech Republic is a member of the European Union, which already has such a scheme, namely the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA), yet bilaterally, CEPA with the Czech is not less important.          The agreement is expected to boost trade growth between Indonesia and the European countries, considering that EU is a strategic trading partner for Indonesia, with total trade between the two sodes in 2017 amounting to US$29 billion.          The sixth round of the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA) negotiations will be held in Indonesia in October 2018.          This week, a Czech Senate delegation is on a visit to Indonesia. It brought along representatives from the Czech Chamber of Commerce, including its Deputy Chair, Michael Steffi.          The Czech delegation is expected to also support the acceleration of the implementation of the I-EU CEPA.

RI, CZECH REPUBLIC FOSTER CLOSER ECONOMIC TIES

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, July 10 (ANTARA) - Indonesia and the Czech Republic have agreed to foster a closer economic cooperation in an effort to increase the volumes of their bilateral trade and investment which was so far considered small.          The agreement was reached during President Vaclav Klaus' three-day ongoing visit to Indonesia, which was the first visit by a Czech head of state, since both nations established relations in 1993, following the fall of Communism at the start of the decade.          "His visit is vitally important because we agreed to increase our partnership. I am pleased to tell you that relations between Indonesia and Czech Republic are running well and continue to grow every day," President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said at a press conference following a bilateral meeting with President Vaclav Klaus at the State Palace on Monday evening.          Yudhoyono said Czech is an important country in Central and Eastern Europe, while Indonesia is the biggest country in Southeast Asia. Although their bilateral trade is still relatively small, trade ties increased significantly in 2010-2011.          According to the Czech Republic's Environment Minister Tomas Chalupa, the total value of bilateral trade between the two nations reached US$500 million in 2011, which  is double that of 2005 as quoted by the Jakarta Post on Tuesday.          Indonesia and Czech Republic on Monday agreed to develop three areas of cooperation which they believe would enhance mutually beneficial economic and investment relations.