JAKARTA Indonesia's president said on Wednesday that his country would appeal a trade dispute ruling that he stated had gone in favor of the European Union, which had sued Indonesia over its 2020 ban on exports of nickel ore.
Speaking at an investment event, President Joko Widodo said that he had ordered his government to appeal the WTO ruling, which would not deter a drive to process more raw materials at home.
We lost at the WTO on this nickel issue. I have told the minister to appeal, said Jokowi, who is widely known as the president.
The EU launched a WTO complaint after saying the restrictions unfairly limited access to nickel in particular, and other commodities.
The WTO hasn't made a public decision yet. The final report was due to be released in the last quarter of 2022 and it formed a panel that oversees the dispute between the EU and Indonesia in April, 2021, according to the Geneva-based body's website.
Jokowi called on Indonesians to stop exporting raw materials and said that exports of other unprocessed minerals such as bauxite would also be stopped.
He said that investors should look for investors, so that there is added value like in nickel.
Indonesia was the world's biggest exporter of nickel before it banned ore exports in order to attract foreign investors to develop nickel smelters and downstream industries onshore, with China being a major source of investment.
We want to be a developed country, we want to create jobs. If we are afraid of being sued and step back, we will not be a developed country.