US: Sanctions on Indonesia

> Washington asking WTO to let it impose US$350m penalty on Jakarta after winning a trade dispute

GENEVA: The United States has asked the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to let it impose sanctions on Indonesia after winning a trade dispute that it said cost US business up to US$350 million (RM1.4 billion) in 2017, a US filing published by the WTO showed on Monday.

The United States and New Zealand both won WTO rulings last year against Indonesian import restrictions on food, plants and animal products, including apples, grapes, potatoes, onions, flowers, juice, dried fruit, cattle, chicken and beef. Indonesia also lost an appeal. The latest US filing said Indonesia had not complied with the ruling, so Washington was seeking annual sanctions to compensate for the damage done to US interests.

“Based on a preliminary analysis of available data for certain products, this level is provisionally estimated at up to approximately US$350 million for 2017,” it said.

Indonesia is still studying the US move to seek sanctions, said Oke Nurwan, trade ministry’s directorgeneral of foreign trade, adding that authorities believe Jakarta had complied with the WTO panel decision. He said rules on Indonesian food imports had already been revised.

The process of seeking compensation often take years, and Indonesia is likely to contest the size of any potential sanctions.

There was no immediate sign of a similar sanctions request from New Zealand, which said last year Indonesia’s restrictions were estimated to have cost New Zealand beef sector up to NZ$1 billion (RM2.74 billion).

Indonesia has been lobbying senior US officials to keep the Southeast Asian nation on a list of countries that receive special trade terms under the Generalised System of Preferences, a facility that gives reduced tariffs to about US$2 billion of Indonesian exports. – Reuters