Abdurrahman visits RI's cultural kin
By Kornelius Purba
NEW DELHI (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid arrived here for a two-day state visit on Tuesday to further enhance ties between Indonesia and India by holding meetings with government and opposition leaders.
An avid admirer of historical and political figures, Abdurrahman not only met with Indian President K.R. Narayanan and Prime Minister Athal Behari Vajpayee, but is also due to meet the widow of slain prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, Sonia, and Mahatma Gandhi's grandson Gopal Khrisna Gandhi on Wednesday.
After a state welcome at Rashtrapati Bhawan Palace, Abdurrahman paid tribute to India as one of Indonesia's cultural matriarchs.
The Indonesian President visited the Mahatma Gandhi memorial on Tuesday afternoon.
"India is one of the sources of our culture," Abdurrahman told reporters.
"Part of our vocabulary comes from Sanskrit ... and Urdu," he added.
India and Indonesia are closely tied, both culturally and historically.
Politically, the two countries have remained to this day at the forefront of Third World development cooperation and are protagonists in groupings such as the Non-Aligned Movement and G- 15.
In mapping out the course of Indonesian foreign policy earlier this year, the Indonesian foreign ministry underlined its intention to forge a closer strategic partnership with Asian countries, including India, to counter Western political and economic preponderance.
Abdurrahman described India on Tuesday as one of the most strategic countries in Asia.
He urged the two countries, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, China and Japan to closely work together in balancing Western power.
An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said during his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Vajpayee, Abdurrahman emphasized the importance of enduring relations with friends like India which were particularly relevant in difficult times.
Sources familiar with protocol said that unlike other official state receptions at the palace, the customary inspection of the honor guard was not conducted. It is believed that Abdurrahman's health may have been the consideration behind this.
Concrete steps to strengthen bilateral cooperation were taken by both leaders, particularly in the fields of tourism, oil exploration and the development of small and medium enterprises.
In the afternoon Abdurrahman and Vajpayee witnessed the signing of a five-year tourism agreement by Indonesian foreign minister Alwi Shihab and Indian tourism minister Ananth Kumar.
The agreement is designed at developing tourist links and traffic between the two countries.
During bilateral talks, Vajpayee expressed his interest to import liquid natural gas from Indonesia.
Foreign minister Alwi Shihab also indicated Indonesia's intention to establish greater cooperation in the natural gas sector.
Alwi also said Indonesia would benefit from increased cooperation in joint ventures in small and medium-scale industries, an area where India excels.
The President and his entourage are to depart India on Wednesday night. His Garuda airbus 330-300 is to take him to Seoul, where he will meet with South Korean President Kim Dae- jung, whom he has described as his spiritual guru.
From Seoul he will fly to Bangkok.
Abdurrahman is scheduled complete his 16-day foreign tour on Sunday.