Howard, SBY unite against terror

Howard, SBY unite against terror

Michelle Nichols, Reuters/Canberra

Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Indonesian President- elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono have agreed to cooperate in fighting the war on terror after speaking for the first time since both won recent elections.

Howard said he spoke to Yudhoyono late on Wednesday and would attend the former general's inauguration on Oct. 20.

"I look forward to working closely with Dr Yudhoyono and his new government to continue and extend the close cooperation between our two nations, particularly on counter-terrorism," Howard said in a statement on Thursday.

"Both nations have a clear commitment to cooperative, mutually beneficial engagement in combating the scourge of terrorism in our region," he said.

Howard's conservative government was re-elected for a fourth straight term on Saturday. Last week Yudhoyono was declared the runaway winner of Indonesia's first direct presidential election, ousting President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"The relationship between Australia and Indonesia is a wide- ranging one encompassing political, trade, people-to-people links and cultural exchanges. I'm sure that under Dr Yudhoyono the relationship ... will continue to strengthen," Howard said.

Howard and Yudhoyono also hope to hold talks next month during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Chile.

But political analyst Michael McKinley believes it is too early to herald a new era of cooperation between the countries, saying Howard still has a lot of work to do because ties have been hindered by his view of Asia as both a market and a threat.

"He's trying to make a gesture in the right direction (by speaking with Yudhoyono)," McKinley told Reuters.

"But it will take a lot more than that symbolism to really improve the relationship. (The government) wants the cooperation on security measures and that is what's driving Howard."

Howard has said he plans to discuss with Yudhoyono the sentences handed down to bombers found responsible for the attacks on nightclubs on the Indonesian island of Bali two years ago which killed 202 people, including 88 Australians.

The bombings were blamed on al Qaeda-linked militant group Jamaah Islamiyah and many of the bombers, including the leaders, have been convicted and sentenced.

Howard also wants to strengthen the relationship between the police forces of Australia and Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country.

Australian police have worked closely with their Indonesian counterparts since the Bali bombings and again since a suicide car bomb exploded outside Australia's Jakarta embassy last month, killing nine people and injuring more than 180.