China's VP arrives in Bali

JAKARTA (JP): Chinese Vice President Hu Jin Tau arrived in Denpasar, Bali, on Saturday for a three-day visit to Indonesia and is scheduled to meet President Abdurrahman Wahid on Monday in Jakarta.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab and Minister of Communications Agum Gumelar will accompany the Chinese vice president while he is in Bali and they will continue the trip to Yogyakarta before heading to Jakarta.

Alwi told The Jakarta Post the visit was a regular courtesy call to highlight the good relations between the two countries.

"We just hope that good economic relations will also follow suit as we expect China to be more enthusiastic in purchasing our liquid natural gas," Alwi said on Saturday before leaving for Denpasar. (dja)