Hassan to visit Gulf countries

JAKARTA: Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda will make an immediate trip to three Gulf countries in a bid to boost bilateral ties between Indonesia and the oil-rich Arab states.

Hassan and his entourage will fly for Doha this Saturday and will hold talks with his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Hamad bin Jasim bin Jabr al-Thani. The Indonesian minister is expected to arrive in Kuwait on Monday for a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Akhmad al-Jabir al- Sabah. The Gulf visit will stop at Abu Dhabi, where Hassan is scheduled to encounter United Arab Emirates counterpart Sheikh Rashid al-Nuaymi on Tuesday.

Indonesia opened diplomatic ties with Kuwait in 1968, and eight years later with Qatar and UAE.

Hassan will continue the Gulf trip to Durban, South Africa, where he will represent Indonesia in the Non-Aligned Movement ministerial meeting between April 24 and April 29. -- JP