Koizumi to visit RI

Koizumi to visit RI

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has announced plans
to visit Indonesia as part of his tour of major Southeast Asian
nations next month.

With Japan's economy in the doldrums and Tokyo scaling back
foreign aid in response, Koizumi is expected to deliver bad news
about the limits to which his country can assist debt-riddled
Indonesia.

Officials at the Japanese embassy said that, upon arrival in
Jakarta on Jan. 12, the prime minister will meet with President
Megawati Soekarnoputri before attending a dinner in his honor
later that evening. In between, he will make a courtesy call on
Vice President Hamzah Haz.

Prior to his departure on Jan. 3, he will lay a wreath at the
Heroes' Cemetery and meet with Chairman of the People's
Consultative Assembly Amien Rais and Speaker of the House of
Representatives Akbar Tandjung.

The talks with Indonesian officials are expected to focus on
enhancing economic cooperation. Japan ranks as Indonesia's
principal trading partner, its biggest aid donor and a major
source of direct foreign investment.

Koizumi's whirlwind Southeast Asian tour will take place
between Jan. 9 and Jan. 15; it will also cover the Philippines,
Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

In Singapore, Koizumi is scheduled to deliver a speech
centered on relations between his country and Southeast Asia as a
whole, according to AFP.

Koizumi will be the 20th leader to make the prestigious
Singapore Lecture on Jan. 14. He will speak on "Japan and ASEAN
in East Asia: For the candid partnership," the Institute of
Southeast Asian Studies said Wednesday.

Previous speakers have included former U.S. president George
Bush, Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, South Korean President Kim Dae-
Jung and former South African president Nelson Mandela.

Koizumi's tour was originally slated for September, but the
trip was postponed after the terrorist attacks in the United
States.