Jakarta, April 5, 2025 – The Europe Today: President Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia, along with four other ASEAN leaders, held a teleconference to discuss strategies in response to the reciprocal tariff policy announced by U.S. President Donald Trump. The policy, which imposes tariffs on several countries, including Indonesia, was a central topic of the conversation.
In a statement released on Saturday, Prabowo’s media team confirmed that the leaders of Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, and Singapore participated in the discussions. The phone call included Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, King Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines, and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
“President Prabowo conducted a teleconference and exchanged views with the leaders of Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, and Singapore,” according to an official statement broadcast by Prabowo’s media team.
On a separate occasion, Prime Minister Ibrahim shared additional details of the conversation on his personal social media account. He outlined the collective concern about the impact of Trump’s tariff policy and emphasized the need for a coordinated response from ASEAN countries.
“Today, I held a phone conversation with leaders of several ASEAN countries, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei Darussalam, and Singapore, to exchange views and coordinate a collective response to the issue of reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States,” Prime Minister Ibrahim wrote.
He also announced that ASEAN economic ministers would meet the following week to further discuss and develop a unified approach to address the tariff issue. “The upcoming ASEAN economic ministers’ meeting next week will continue deliberations on this matter and seek the best possible solution for all member countries,” he added.
The reciprocal tariff policy, which was announced by President Trump on April 2, 2025, will be implemented in stages. The initial phase, effective April 5, imposes a general 10 percent tariff on all affected countries. Special tariffs, starting on April 9, will target specific countries, including Indonesia, which will face a 32 percent tariff. Other ASEAN countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam will also be subject to varying tariff rates.
This tariff policy has raised concerns across the ASEAN region, prompting the leadership of the affected countries to prioritize diplomatic coordination to mitigate the economic impact on their respective nations.
