New era with Indonesia won't be all joy: Howard

New era with Indonesia won't be all joy: Howard

Neil Sands, Agence France-Presse/Sydney

Australian Prime Minister John Howard sounded a note of caution
as he and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono were
praised for ushering in a new era of Jakarta-Canberra relations
on Tuesday, warning ongoing tensions were inevitable.

Both leaders talked up renewing ties that were soured by
Australia's involvement in East Timorese independence from
Indonesia in 1999, but Howard also said the nations "won't always
agree".

"We are nations that have very different histories, very
different cultures, we are different societies and we shouldn't
pretend that those differences don't exist," Howard told
commercial radio.

"But it's always better to try and find the points of
agreement," he added, expressing his belief they could maintain a
close relationship despite the differences.

Experts said Susilo's trip had cemented ties that were already
improving after Canberra's generous response to the Dec. 26
Indian Ocean tsunami disaster and the more recent earthquake on
the Indonesian island of Nias.

But they said ordinary Indonesians' views of Australia were
still dominated by the row over East Timorese independence, a
topic avoided by Susilo and Howard during the trip.

"The relationship has definitely warmed but I don't know if
its fundamentals have changed," Adelaide University senior
lecturer in international politics Felix Patrikeeff told AFP.

"The respective world-views are so different that there will
always be gaps in understanding, meaning the relationship can
change very quickly."

But Patrikeeff said Howard's pledge of A$1 billion (US$765
million) in tsunami aid and low-interest loans had altered
relations enough to allow Susilo's visit, which he said would
have been impossible a few years ago.

The change was symbolized when a somber Susilo laid bronze
medals of velour on the caskets of nine Australian military
personnel killed in a helicopter crash while performing aid work
in Nias -- an Indonesian leader honoring members of the military
that helped end Jakarta's rule in East Timor.

Earlier, Susilo pledged a war on corruption as he sought to
persuade Australian business leaders to lift investment in his
disaster-hit country.

The president said his government was determined to end the
graft, bureaucratic bottlenecks and red tape that were hampering
foreign investment in his homeland.

He said he viewed the anti-corruption drive as a personal
responsibility and ranked the issue alongside the fight against
terrorism, in his speech to a business function in Sydney.

"I declare war against corruption (and) against terrorism for
the better of Indonesia," he told executives.

Howard also made the link with terrorism when addressing
business leaders Monday, saying investment in Indonesia was an
important way of defeating extremism.

"A successful, moderate, Islamic Indonesia led by a man of
compassion and man of vision such as President Yudhoyono is about
the most powerful weapon that we can have against zealotry and
extremism in our part of the world," Howard said.

During his visit, Susilo agreed to press his fellow Southeast
Asian leaders to accept Australia into Asian-bloc talks later
this year.

Susilo and Howard also said their nations would negotiate a
"comprehensive partnership" which includes a new security
agreement and increased air and maritime cooperation.

He was due to leave for New Zealand on late Tuesday.