Asia's giants back ASEAN's support for RI

By Meidyatama Suryodiningrat

BANGKOK (JP): A day after receiving support for its national integrity in an ASEAN communique, Indonesia enjoyed another diplomatic boost on Wednesday when the foreign ministers from China, Japan and South Korea voiced similar support in a joint statement.

The three-paragraph statement was issued following the first formal meeting of the "ASEAN+3", which groups the foreign ministers from the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their counterparts from the three northeast Asian nations.

"The foreign ministers commended the approach undertaken by the Indonesian government in its efforts to reach a peaceful solution to its problems in Aceh and Irian Jaya (Papua) through dialog and reconciliation consistent with its efforts to maintain the momentum of political and economic reform," the statement reads.

The Joint Statement of ASEAN+3 in Support of the Sovereignty, Territorial Integrity and National Unity of Indonesia also "commended the efforts and measures taken by the Indonesian government to restore peace in these provinces and encouraged the international community to support the Indonesian government in its humanitarian relief efforts to the people in need".

The foreign ministers recognized the stability and prosperity of Indonesia would positively contribute to peace in the entire Asian region.

While such statements of support are not new, it marks another diplomatic triumph for Indonesia in stifling separatist movements that have gained in intensity since the downfall of the New Order regime of former president Soeharto.

The ASEAN+3 is a new forum which was only recently formalized as an avenue of dialog between ASEAN and the three northeast Asian powers.

The brief two-hour meeting here was sandwiched between the two-day ASEAN Ministerial Meeting which ended on Tuesday, and the one-day ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) political-security dialog which will take place on Thursday.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab did not attend Wednesday's meeting, and is not expected to attend the ARF meeting after returning to Indonesia on Tuesday night to take part in the National Awakening Party (PKB) congress. Alwi is a candidate for the party's chairmanship.

He is due back in Bangkok on Thursday night or Friday morning.

Alwi was represented on Wednesday by his director general for political affairs, Hassan Wirajuda, who attended the session as a "special envoy".

According to Hassan, "even before we requested" several countries had taken the initiative to ask the ASEAN+3 to issue a statement in support of Indonesia.

"We welcomed it," he said, adding that "as a collective statement, yes this is something new. But if we look at the process it is really a reiteration of the individual support already given".

Hassan also noted this was part of Jakarta's diplomatic efforts to "fence in efforts from inside the country to violate our national integrity".

Cooperation

Discussing the atmosphere of this inaugural meeting of the ASEAN+3, Thai Minister of Foreign Affairs and ASEAN chairman Surin Pitsuwan said it was a "constructive and good beginning".

He said the ministers saw the potential benefits of holding such meetings and agreed to hold further dialogs in the future. "We agreed that we should make use of the time at the (UN) General Assembly in New York in September to meet once a year there too .... We want to make it a retreat if possible so everyone will be informal and candid".

The foreign ministers also agreed to intensify cooperation in developing the region, while recognizing the importance of the development of the Mekong Basin to promote ASEAN economic integration with a view toward reducing economic disparities.

In this context, the ministers expressed their full support for the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific's designation of the years 2000 to 2009 as the Decade of Greater Subregion Development Cooperation.

The ministers also discussed preparations for the ASEAN+3 Summit, which is scheduled to be held in Singapore on Nov. 25.