Indonesia adopts evacuation plan for its citizen in Iraq

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Anticipating a possible United States attack against Iraq in the near future, the government has prepared a contingency plan to evacuate all Indonesian citizens from the country.

Indonesian foreign ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said on Friday that the ministry had intensified contacts with the embassy in Baghdad in order to monitor the situation.

"We are prepared to evacuate our diplomats in Baghdad should the U.S. conduct strikes against Iraq," Marty said during the weekly press briefing.

He did not mention the number of Indonesian citizens in Iraq. However, there are approximately 40 Indonesian students currently studying at the University of Baghdad.

The official reiterated Jakarta's opposition to any unilateral action against Iraq and stressed that the United Nations (UN) should be at the forefront in resolving the issue.

"Should the UN issue any new resolution as the representative of the international community we will respect the decision, but in the meantime we will keep in constant contact with our embassy in Baghdad," Marty said.