But Mr Potocnik also thought ratification of the VPA on February 27 in the European Parliament was a good result, ensuring the legality of timber exports from Indonesia to the EU.
The Indonesian government and forest industry welcomed the ratification, with the former telling the Jakarta Post that the VPA agreement could lead to a 5-7% initial uplift in Indonesian timber product exports to the EU. However, the process of issuing licences for timber exports is still likely to take some months yet.
Mr Potocnik admitted the resolution to ratify the VPA contained some concerns, such as clarifying traditional forest tenure rights. But he said these issues went "beyond the remit" of what the Commission could deliver and would probably take several years to resolve.
