Indonesia to attends IDEA meeting

Indonesia to attends IDEA meeting

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia will attend a ministerial meeting on Aug. 12 in Tokyo,
Japan, aimed at strengthening cooperation between the Association
of South East Asia Nations and Japan, South Korea and China
(ASEAN+3).

Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Marty Nata
Legawa said on Friday that Minister of Foreign Affairs Hasan
Wirajuda would represent Indonesia at the meeting.

The meeting is called the Initiative for Development in East
Asia (IDEA) ministerial meeting.

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs led by its Minister
Yoriko Kawaguchi would host the meeting, said Marty.

He added that foreign and development ministers from ASEAN,
South Korea and China would also be present at the meeting.

Marty went on to explain that IDEA was a new initiative
launched by the Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in
January, 2002 when he visited the ASEAN countries.

IDEA is aimed at developing cooperation in ASEAN+3, he said.

It was also a consultative forum to discuss various issues
ranging from development policies, economic problems to regional
development vision, he added.

The forum would also address an assessment on the procedures
and capital availability for Asian development, said Marty.

In addition, IDEA would help technology and skills transfers
as well as exchanges of views on multilateral development through
the dissemination of the forum's results, he added.