Alatas and Moerdiono to attend Hong Kong handover ceremony

JAKARTA (JP): China has invited Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas and Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono to attend the hand over of Hong Kong to China the end of the month.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas was invited as Indonesia's representative to a midnight extravaganza, to be attended by 4,000 VIPs, including China's President Jiang Zemin, to bid farewell to 156 years of British colonial rule.

"I may also use this opportunity to meet with my Chinese counterpart Foreign Minister Qian Qichen," Alatas said after the inauguration of Minister of Information Hartono, Army Chief of Staff Wiranto and State Minister of Special Assignments Harmoko.

Moerdiono was invited by the Chinese government as a "friend of the Chinese people and government".

Moerdiono played a key role in the normalization of relations between Indonesia and China.

Indonesia and China officially resumed diplomatic ties after a-23 year break in August 1990, during a state visit to Jakarta by Chinese Prime Minister Li Peng.

Diplomatic relations were frozen in 1967, two years after an abortive coup attempt by the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI). China was accused of being involved. It denied the accusations.

President Soeharto appointed Moerdiono to head a committee to normalize ties after a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen in Tokyo, February, 1989.

"I regard this invitation as a great honor," Moerdiono said yesterday.

He said he would attend the ceremony unless he has a more important state duty. (06)