Dutch FM arrives in Jakarta

JP/P.J. Leo

The Netherlands' Minister of Foreign Affairs Bernard Bot (left) and Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia Ruud Treffers (right) enter a hotel in South Jakarta. Bot, who was born in Batavia (Jakarta's former name) in 1937, arrived in Jakarta on Wednesday for three days of talks with Indonesian officials on bilateral relations, counterterrorism and the upcoming Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM). During his stay, Bot is scheduled to meet with his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirayuda and the country's two presidential candidates -- incumbent President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. He will also address a seminar at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies on Thursday. Retno Marsudi, Director of West European Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told The Jakarta Post that although ASEM was not the main focus of the Dutch minister's visit, Bot and Hassan were expected to discuss the organization of the October meeting in Hanoi. -- JP