Brussels, 09 January 2007
The Hon. M.S. Kaban, Minister of Forestry of Indonesia met Commissioners Louis Michel and Stavros Dimas, responsible for Development and Environment respectively, in Brussels on 8th January 2007. They agreed to initiate formal negotiations towards conclusion of a voluntary partnership agreement (VPA) on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT), which will provide assurance that Indonesian forest products imported to the EU are verified to be legal. The agreement will also provide for cooperation, including capacity building, market and technical studies and knowledge-sharing.
The commitment to proceed with formal negotiations followed a series of informal consultations between Indonesia and the EU over the past year as well as intensive consultations amongst stakeholders in Indonesia.
Commissioner Dimas said: "Indonesia has played a leading role in placing illegal logging on the international agenda. The EU and Indonesia recognise that as consumers and producers of tropical timber we have a joint responsibility to eradicate illegal logging and move towards our shared goal of sustainable forest management".
Minister Kaban stated that "The Government of Indonesia appreciates EU’s support to Indonesia’s commitment in implementing the principles of sustainable forestry management. In the view of the future negotiations, Indonesia has already undertaken numerous multi-stakeholders’ consultations and it is hoped that the final VPA will provide both parties, Indonesia and the EU, with a sound basis for preventing export and import of illegally-harvested timber".
Commissioner Michel concluded by stating that "good governance is fundamental if the benefits of trade in forest products are to be shared by Indonesian society. The start of FLEGT negotiations is thus a very positive step for Indonesia's development and the sustainable management of its resources."
How might a single threat, even one deemed unlikely, spiral into an evolving global crisis which challenges the foundations of global security, economic stability and democratic governance, all in the matter of a few weeks?
The former lead climate negotiator for the UK and the EU, Peter Betts, welcomes the decision to move COP26 to 2021 and discusses what is needed from the postponed climate summit.
Paris and Berlin have added their names to a growing list of EU capitals asking for the European Green Deal to be placed at the heart of the EU’s post-pandemic recovery plan.
Greenhouse gas emissions are down and air quality has gone up, as governments react to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the head of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Inger Andersen, has cautioned against viewing this as a boon for the environment. In this First Person editorial from UN News, Ms. Andersen calls instead for a profound, systemic shift to a more sustainable economy that works for both people and the planet.