Indonesia, Vietnam sign boundary and visa deals
Indonesia, Vietnam sign boundary and visa deals
Agencies, Hanoi
Vietnam and Indonesia signed an agreement on Thursday that
resolves a two-decade-old dispute over a sea boundary in an area
rich in oil and gas.
Both countries also waived visa requirements for each other's
nationals.
A coffee pact that limits exports from the two countries,
which are the world's top two robusta bean producers, was also
signed.
President Megawati Soekarnoputri, on her second visit to the
communist country, headed the signing ceremony for the sea
agreement.
The maritime accord marks out the continental shelf boundary
and provides a basis for additional oil and gas exploration in
the Natuna Sea area.
Megawati, speaking in Hanoi's ornate French colonial era
Presidential Palace, was quoted by Reuters as saying that the
pact was concluded "after a long period of negotiation" of more
than 20 years.
The Natuna area, in the South China Sea between the island of
Borneo and the Malaysian peninsula, is rich in oil and gas, with
a potential 2.8 billion barrels. Indonesia already has a major
gas installation in the area that supplies Singapore.
Neither side provided any details on the pact.
Also, it is not clear whether the deal will be enough for
Indonesia to start exploring for oil and gas in the area, which
also borders with Malaysia and Thailand.
An official at the foreign ministry told The Jakarta Post on
Thursday that Indonesia was working on a similar border deal with
Thailand.
Besides the maritime deal, Indonesia and Vietnam also agreed
to waive visa requirements for each others nationals. Previously,
the privilege was extended only to bearers of official passports.
Megawati said at the press conference, as reported by Antara,
that her second visit to Vietnam would strengthen the
relationship between the two countries, which was officially
established in 1955.
The President also thanked the Vietnamese government for
expressing support for Indonesia's territorial integrity and
sovereignty in its war against separatist rebels in Aceh.
Indonesia's State Logistics Agency (Bulog) said last week it
hoped to agree to a deal worth up to US$100 million with Vietnam
under which Jakarta would buy rice and sugar from Hanoi which, in
return, would receive technical assistance for a fertilizer
plant.
Vietnam imports fertilizer and refined oil from Indonesia and
exports rice and crude oil to the country.
In 2002, Indonesia, a key market for Vietnamese rice, bought
800,000 tons of the grain from Vietnam.
Total two-way trade between the countries was valued at $693
million in 2002, the state-run Vietnam News Agency said.
Megawati is scheduled to end her visit to Hanoi on Friday, the
fourth leg of her Asian tour after Bangladesh, Mongolia and
Japan.