'RI must play a role in Korean peninsula'<\/p>\n
Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesia must help to resolve the nuclear issue on the Korean
\nPeninsula by using its close links with North Korea, a group of
\nSouth Korean scholars said in Depok, West Java.<\/p>\n
\"Right from the beginning, Indonesia has had close links with
\nNorth Korea. Even at the personnel level, the leaders of
\nIndonesia and North Korea have been maintaining good rapport for
\nseveral decades. Indonesia must use its links with North Korea to
\nresolve the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula,\" Prof. Yoo Ho-
\nyeol from the Korea University said in a seminar on the Role of
\nIndonesia in Inter-Korean Relations.<\/p>\n
The seminar was held at the University of Indonesia's Faculty
\nof Social and Political Sciences on Friday.<\/p>\n
Indonesia is one of the very few countries that has close
\nrelations with both South Korea and North Korea.<\/p>\n
\"Previously, Indonesia facilitated dialog between North and
\nSouth Korean officials in Jakarta. So, we wish that Indonesia
\ncontinue its efforts in convincing North Korea to engage in
\ndialog with South Korea and resolve disputes in a peaceful
\nmanner, including nuclear issue,\" Prof Kim Soo-il, another
\nparticipant of the seminar, from the Busan University of Foreign
\nStudies, said in fluent Bahasa Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He was referring to the meeting between the foreign ministers
\nof both Koreas last year during the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF)
\nmeeting in Jakarta. The other meeting was between South Korean
\nPrime Minister Lee Hae-chan and North Korea's president of the
\npresidium of the Supreme People's Assembly Kim Yong-nam in April
\nduring the Asian-African Summit in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Prof. Kim has been Indonesia's honorary consul in Busan since
\n1993.<\/p>\n
But an Indonesian scholar have a different view on the role of
\nIndonesia in the inter-Korean relations.<\/p>\n
\"After the 1997 crisis, Indonesia is still preoccupied with
\ninternal matters. It doesn't have time or energy to focus on
\nexternal issues. But Indonesia can contribute through ASEAN
\n(Association of Southeast Asian Nations), ASEAN+3 and ARF
\nprocesses to resolve the nuclear issue peacefully,\" said Makmur
\nKeliat, a main speaker at the seminar and an expert on East Asian
\nStudies at the University of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Prof. Kim and Prof. Yoo and 19 other Korean scholars came to
\nIndonesia on an invitation from Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso. All
\nthe 21 scholars are members of the Korean Political Science
\nAssociation.<\/p>\n
Earlier, the dean of the Faculty of Social and Political
\nSciences Prof. Gumilar Rusliwa Somantri welcomed the Korean
\ndelegation and introduced his staff members to them.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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