Zhu's visit to strengthen economic ties<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Aimed at solidifying relations between the two largest
\ncountries in East Asia, China's Prime Minister Zhu Rongji pays a
\nfive-day state visit to Indonesia beginning on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Zhu's visit, the first by a Chinese prime minister in the past
\n11 years, is expected to bring pledges of financial assistance to
\nIndonesia and to focus on strengthening economic ties between the
\n\"two giants\" of the region.<\/p>\n
Zhu, born on Oct. 1, 1928, is known as a technocrat who has
\nhelped bring about substantial economic progress to the world's
\nlargest communist country after he was appointed premier on March
\n17, 1998.<\/p>\n
Joining the communist party in 1949, Zhu, who was a graduate
\nof prestigious Tsinghua University, Beijing, earned the favor of
\nthen Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping when Zhu was mayor of
\nShanghai. Zhu's reform measures turned out to be effective in
\nreducing the number of inefficient civil servants and inflation
\nas well as in fixing state-run enterprises, which had been
\noperating in the red.<\/p>\n
Zhu's visit, from Nov. 7 through Nov. 11, is seen as a great
\nstride in bilateral relations between the countries, which
\nresumed full diplomatic ties in August 1990, after being frozen
\nfor more than two decades in the wake of the September 1965
\nabortive coup allegedly launched by the Indonesian Communist
\nParty.<\/p>\n
Besides meeting President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Zhu is also
\nslated to meet with the People's Consultative Assembly Speaker
\nAmien Rais and House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung.<\/p>\n
Among the agreements that are expected to be signed during his
\nvisit is cooperation on tourism, which will make Indonesia one of
\nthe leading tourist destinations for Chinese travelers. It is
\nalso expected that China will give financial assistance to the
\nJakarta government, though the amount has yet to be finalized by
\nBeijing.<\/p>\n
Zhu will also strive for the reopening of the Bank of China,
\nwhich was closed after the suspension of diplomatic ties in 1967.<\/p>\n
The Chinese premier will visit the ancient Javanese city of
\nYogyakarta and will spend the weekend on the resort island of
\nBali before flying back to Beijing on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Sino-Indonesian ties have achieved enormous progress since the
\nnormalization of full diplomatic ties, particularly during the
\ntenure of former president Abdurrahman Wahid.<\/p>\n
Chinese foreign ministry officials said that the replacement
\nof the deposed Abdurrahman by Megawati had not affected bilateral
\nties as Megawati, whose father was Sukarno, Indonesia's first
\npresident, had been one of Asia's familiar figures in the minds
\nof hundreds of millions of Chinese people.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/zhus-visit-to-strengthen-economic-ties-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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