Analysts say RI-U.S. ties improving, U.S. told to give concrete support

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Bilateral relations between Indonesia and the U.S. government have been improving following Indonesia's commitment to combat terrorism, but suspicion between the two countries remain and could potentially upset ties, several international relations analysts said on Wednesday.

Suspicion remains rife, especially among the people, that the U.S. is attacking Islam and that Indonesia continues to be a safe haven for terrorists, they said.

"Ties between the two countries are getting better, but suspicion, mainly here that the U.S. is targeting Muslims in its war against terrorism, could hamper the relationship," Kusnanto Anggoro of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) told the Jakarta Post.

On the other hand, Kusnanto said, Americans might also think that the Indonesian government was not serious in its fight against terrorism.

But the level of suspicion in the U.S. against Indonesia is not as high as the level of suspicion here toward the U.S., he said.

Meanwhile, Dewi Fortuna Anwar of the Habibie Center said growing antireligious sentiments among people in both countries would impede the two countries ties from improving further.

"At the government level, officials can draw a firm line to separate terrorism from Islam, but the general public has difficulty understanding it," she told the Post.

She urged religious leaders in both countries to communicate to their followers that the war against terrorism does not target Islam so that improving relations between the countries could be maintained.

Relations between Indonesia and the U.S. have markedly improved following the Indonesian government's move to arrest leaders of hard-line groups, including terror suspect Abu Bakar Ba'asyir.

The Indonesian government has taken tough measures, especially after the Bali bombings, which killed more than 190 people, mostly foreigners, and injured more than 300 others.

Meanwhile, Ikrar Nusa Bhakti of the National Institute of Sciences (LIPI) said the U.S. should do more to help Indonesia recover from the crisis as a reward for its drive to fight terrorism.

"Let's see what the U.S. government can help with after the terrorist attacks in Bali. They only praise our government's moves to fight terrorism and dispatch investigators here, which have had a minor impact on Indonesians," he told the Post.

He cited a good example shown by the Japanese government, which extended a US$20 million grant to Indonesia to help Bali recover from the attacks.

Meanwhile, Kusnanto, who is also a military analyst, said that the U.S. government could help Indonesia in the way of securing the country's unity by offering more training and grants to the National Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI).

"After a ten-year boycott (from the U.S.), the ability of the TNI and the police to keep Indonesia secure has dropped sharply. It's not good for the country to be plagued by conflicts in various places," he said.

Nevertheless, Dewi said that she had reservations about giving more aid to the military, saying that both countries should concentrate more on strengthening democracy in Indonesia.

"I think we need to make strengthening our democracy the number one priority that has to be supported by the U.S. government," she said.