ASEAN economic ministers agreed to accelerate the completion of the review negotiations on the ASEAN -India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA), which is targeted for completion before the end of 2025.
Indonesian Deputy Minister of Trade and Head of the Indonesian Delegation, Dyah Roro Esti, stated that the agreement was reached during the Special ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) Meeting on the Review of the ASEAN-India Trade in
Goods Agreement (AITIGA), which took place in a hybrid format in Jakarta on Thursday (28/8/2025).
"This meeting is a strategic opportunity to resolve pending issues with India and encourage the achievement of meaningful and balanced outcomes for all parties," Roro said in a statement in Jakarta on Friday.
Roro explained that the ministers had received a progress report on the AITIGA review submitted by Malaysia as the coordinator of the ASEAN-India negotiations.
Indonesia provides full support for this process to be completed quickly with the aim of making AITIGA simpler, more transparent, and more facilitating for business actors.
During the meeting, Indonesia also emphasized the importance of strengthening long-term ASEAN-India trade relations, which have proven to provide tangible benefits to the region.
The implementation of AITIGA is considered to open up significant opportunities for Indonesian businesses and contribute to increasing regional trade.
"This reinforces Indonesia's commitment to ensuring that the AITIGA review results in improved trade facilitation, deepened regional economic integration, and expanded business opportunities for all parties," Roro said.
India is currently ASEAN's eighth-largest trading partner. Therefore, the AITIGA review is seen as an opportunity to strengthen trade relations between the two countries.
