ASIO to open liaison office in Jakarta

ASIO to open liaison office in Jakarta

Agencies, Sydney, Australia

Australia's top intelligence body is setting up a permanent office in Jakarta as part of moves to step up regional counter- terrorism efforts following the Bali bombing, officials said on Monday.

Attorney-General Daryl Williams told parliament the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) liaison office would be opened with immediate effect.

"A decision has been made to immediately enhance the ASIO presence in Indonesia," he said.

The move reflected the government's growing concern with the rise of religious radicalism in Indonesia since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the rout of the al-Qaeda network in Afghanistan.

Australia had been planning to upgrade its presence in Indonesia since early this year, but swung into action after the Oct. 12 bombing in Bali.

The move came after the government and the intelligence communities drew withering criticism for failing to adequately warn Australians about the danger of traveling to Bali despite receiving U.S. intelligence reports naming the island as a likely terrorist target.

More than 90 Australians are thought to have died in the bombing of two nightclubs popular with Western tourists.

None has claimed responsibility for the attack but Australia has pointed the finger at religious radicals linked to al-Qaeda.

The government has issued four travel warnings since the blast, urging Australians to leave Indonesia if they are in the country for non-essential business.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer reiterated the warnings in parliament on Monday, saying that ongoing arrests of Islamic radicals by Indonesian authorities was expected to prompt new attacks on Westerners.

He warned about threats to "up market" tourism sites in cities and resorts outside major population areas.

ASIO had previously relied on visits by senior officers to Indonesia to discuss intelligence matters with their Indonesian counterparts.

But numerous reports of al-Qaeda links in Indonesia prompted a decision to set up a permanent presence in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, Downer said in Canberra on Monday Australia will fight terrorism in Southeast Asia with diplomacy, not force.

"We're not planning to send the Australian Defense Force into Southeast Asia in order to fight the war on terrorism," Downer told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio.

Prime Minister John Howard on Sunday assured the United States that Australia - one of Washington's closest allies - remained committed to the global war on terror following the nightclub bombing on the Indonesian island of Bali, which killed nearly 200 people and injured 300, many of them Australians.

Australia held a national day of mourning Sunday for its dead. Officials said on Monday that 92 Australians are confirmed dead or missing. The toll has fallen from the weekend, as some feared missing from the Oct. 12 attack have been accounted for.

Downer rejected suggestions from some opposition parties that the government should withdraw its forces from Afghanistan following the Bali blast.

Australia was one of the first countries to commit troops to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan. The government has also not ruled out support for a U.S.-led strike against Iraq, even without UN backing, although opposition lawmaker and most Australians want UN approval before any attack.

Government critics argue that as a medium-sized economy with relatively small defense and intelligence services, Australia should focus efforts against terrorism in its own region.

Downer said that view implies the government should use troops to fight terror in the region.

Downer said Monday he expected Indonesian authorities would intensively interrogate Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, who is accused of leading Jamaah Islamiyah, which is believed to be al- Qaeda's main ally in Southeast Asia and is suspected in the nightclub attack.