Indonesia seeks U.S. support for EAEC plan

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (JP): Indonesia asked the United States yesterday to dispel any remaining doubts it may harbor about the plan to establish the East Asia Economic Caucus (EAEC), a regional trade lobby group, proposed by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The appeal was made during a meeting between Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas and U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher. The lunch meeting was held on the sidelines of a conference involving the foreign ministers of ASEAN and the group's seven main trading partners.

Alatas told reporters that during the meeting he informed Christopher about the progress ASEAN has made on the proposal and asked that Washington ease its opposition to the plan.

"It is misleading to think that the EAEC is solely supported by Malaysia, and since it has now been backed up by all ASEAN members, we asked the United States to reconsider its opposition to it," he said.

The EAEC was originally proposed by Malaysia as a trade bloc linking ASEAN's seven members with Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Other ASEAN member countries endorsed the plan after it was watered down to become a trade caucus within the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, of which the United States is also a member.

Alatas also said that the United States has dropped its opposition to an ASEAN plan to declare Southeast Asia a nuclear weapons-free region.

Earlier, during the ASEAN conference with its seven major trading partners, Alatas appealed to the international community to end their isolation of Myanmar and join in ASEAN's policy of "constructive engagement" with Yangon.

He told the conference that ASEAN was looking forward to further progress in Myanmar.

Meanwhile, a State Department spokesman said that Christopher offered to sell Indonesia some of the F-16 fighter jets Congress blocked from being delivered to Pakistan. Christopher reportedly made the offer during a meeting with Alatas

Alatas, according to State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns, said he would examine the offer but remained "non- committal", AFP reported.

Talks with Alatas on the F-16 issue had been "preliminary" and Christopher gave "no price information" on what Jakarta would have to pay for the fighters, Burns said.

The 28 late model A and B F-16s have depreciated in value sitting in hangars in the United States.

Christopher also asked Alatas if Jakarta could provide more oil to North Korea, in addition to the 3,000 tons it has already sent, Burns said.

Jakarta has promised to look into it but has not given a definitive response. (ego)