Indonesia's defence minister and presidential candidate, Prabowo Subianto greets the supporters after registering himself for next year's presidential election, at the election commission headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia, October 25, 2023.
REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsJAKARTA, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Indonesia's presidential front-runner Prabowo Subianto on Monday criticised the European Union over its ban on palm oil imports and said Europeans during colonial times were also guilty of deforestation.
The EU in April passed a law which would ban imports of commodities linked to forest destruction, including palm oil of which Indonesia is the world's biggest producer.
Prabowo, who is leading opinion polls ahead of a presidential election next February, said Indonesia maintains "good" relations with Europe "although we have problems sometimes with the European Union".
The EU, Indonesia and neighbouring Malaysia, the world's second-largest palm oil producer, have formed a task force to discuss the law.
Persons:
Prabowo Subianto, Willy Kurniawan, Prabowo, Mercedes Benz, Stanley Widianto, Susan Fenton
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Locations:
Jakarta, Indonesia, Rights JAKARTA, European, Europe, EU, Dutch, Dutch East Indies, Malaysia