Jakarta. The South Korea-led middle-power grouping MIKTA-- which includes Indonesia -- has agreed to intensify efforts to advance multilateralism as the United States’ sweeping tariff hikes continue to fuel global economic uncertainty.

MIKTA is an informal coalition of Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, and Australia. Seoul currently holds the group’s rotating chairmanship and is set to hand it over to Australia next year.

The leaders convened a brief meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg over the weekend and issued a joint statement expressing concerns about mounting economic volatility. Although the communiqué did not explicitly address the source of the anxiety, governments and analysts worldwide have repeatedly warned of the far-reaching impact of US President Donald Trump’s escalating tariff measures.

The statement cited “deep concern over the complex, multifaceted challenges confronting the international community,” referring to sustained geopolitical tensions, global economic uncertainty, supply-chain disruption, poverty and inequality, multiple environmental crises including climate change, and the accelerating pace of digital transformation.

According to the group, these converging risks reinforce the need to strengthen “multilateralism and international cooperation.”

“Leaders resolved to continue close coordination between member states and reinforce MIKTA’s constructive role in shaping a safer, more just, equitable, and sustainable international order,” the document said.

Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka represented Indonesia at the meeting on behalf of President Prabowo Subianto, who did not attend the G20 Summit. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were present in Johannesburg. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, known for rarely traveling abroad, delegated attendance to Finance Minister Edgar Amador Zamora.

The second Trump administration has moved aggressively to remake global trade by raising tariffs on countries around the world, offering reductions only in exchange for concessions that typically involve expanded market access for US exports.

Indonesia currently faces one of the steepest tariff rates among MIKTA members at 19 percent. Washington has agreed to lower duties on South Korean goods from 25 percent to 15 percent under a bilateral deal. The tariff rate on Turkish imports stands at 15 percent, while Australia faces the baseline 10 percent tariff — though Trump has recently exempted imported beef, one of Australia’s largest exports to the US. Mexico, meanwhile, is under pressure to tighten border controls on drug smuggling as Trump threatens to raise duties from 25 percent to 30 percent.

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