Jakarta. Indonesia and Russia will have bilateral trade talks next month ahead of President Prabowo Subianto's first-ever state visit to Moscow, according to a Russian diplomat.

Senior minister Airlangga Hartarto recently unveiled Prabowo's plans to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Russia this June. Airlangga said Prabowo would ink a principal agreement related to Indonesia's trade pact with the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Sergei Tolchenov said he was still waiting for a confirmation letter from Jakarta regarding Prabowo's upcoming trip. Preparations for the big day would likely go underway after the letter is received.

Even so, both governments are already scheduled to have a joint trade and economic cooperation commission meeting in mid-April. Airlangga would co-lead the meeting alongside the Russian First Deputy Prime Minister, Denis Manturov, Tolchenov revealed. Media reports showed that a bilateral business forum would also take place in Jakarta on the sidelines of the commission meeting.

"This joint commission meeting will mark the first step [for Prabowo-Putin meeting]. ...We will have a very comprehensive meeting on economic cooperation, trade, investment, and so on," Tolchenov told reporters in Jakarta on Wednesday evening.

Representatives from different Russian ministries will discuss various fields of cooperation, including education. Some Russian governors will likely attend, thus paving the way for a local-level partnership with Indonesian provinces, Tolchenov said. 

Foreign Affairs Minister Sugiono is expected to head to Russia before Prabowo meets Putin in the coming weeks or months.

"It's normal for the foreign minister to have bilateral talks before the two heads of state meet," Tolchenov added.

EAEU Pact Needs Everyone's Approval
Airlangga claimed that the Indonesia-EAEU trade pact would be high up on the agenda when Prabowo visits the Kremlin. Jakarta and the EAEU launched their trade pact negotiations in December 2022 with the first round of talks taking place about four months later. According to Airlangga, only one out of fifteen chapters in the trade agreement remains to be completed. 

Just like Indonesia, Russia is hoping the Indonesia-EAEU trade pact could get signed "as soon as possible". However, Tolchenov admitted that they were still trying to finalize the text. Considering that the EAEU is a five-member grouping, Prabowo and Putin's signatures are not enough for the deal to come into effect. Aside from Russia, the EAEU includes post-Soviet states Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. There are also internal ratification processes needed for its entry into force.

"This is not an agreement between just Russia and Indonesia. It involves all EAEU members. ... So it has to be signed by all six heads of state. ... If we manage to finalize [the text] before June, perhaps all six leaders can get together in Moscow to sign [the document]," Tolchenov said.

If not, there is still a possibility that Prabowo's visit would only see the announcement that the document is ready for signing. All leaders could gather for the signing later at a more appropriate time.

The government reported that Indonesia's trade with Russia had jumped from $3.3 billion in 2023 to almost $3.6 billion the following year. Bilateral trade amounted to $403.6 million in January 2025. Official statistics showed that Indonesia-EAEU trade had reached $3.8 billion in 2023 with Jakarta facing a $1.6 billion imbalance. A trade pact typically aims to remove trade barriers.

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