Alatas: No official ties with Israel

Alatas: No official ties with Israel

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said
yesterday that although contacts between people in Indonesia and
Israel are growing, diplomatic relations remain unlikely in the
near future.

"Yes, presently there are personal contacts. Maybe soon there
might be trade relations," Alatas said when asked about reports
of increasing ties between the two states.

Early this month, executives of Koors Industries Ltd, Israel's
biggest industrial concern, visited Indonesia to explore business
prospects. It is not immediately clear who they met in Indonesia
as their visit was not covered by the press.

Alatas emphasized that on a government level, Indonesia
remains faithful to its policy that a comprehensive solution to
the Middle East problem be established before it opens diplomatic
ties with Israel.

"Our stance has not changed," he said.

Public attitude towards unofficial contacts with Israel have
become less critical now with more and more Indonesians making
pilgrimage to the Al Aqsa (Dome of the Rock) Mosque, a Moslem
holy shrine, in the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

Only two years ago, a group of Indonesian journalists were
widely criticized for visiting Israel at the invitation of the
Jewish state. A group of Moslem leaders received similar
treatment when they traveled to Israel last year.

Alatas said that while personal contacts between the two
countries are growing, the government would not be hasty in
changing its policy. "Let's not take things too fast. We have to
do this slowly," he said.

In the absence of diplomatic ties, President Soeharto met the
late Israeli prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin, on two occasions in
the last three years: in Jakarta in 1993 when Soeharto was
chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement, and in New York last
October during 50th anniversary of the United Nations.

Meanwhile the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday issued a
statement expressing regret over Sunday's bombing in Jerusalem
and Ashqelon that left 25 people dead.

"The government of Indonesia hopes that these acts of violence
will not hamper the ongoing peace process in the Middle East,"
the statement said. (mds)