Powell's visit to Asia expected to bring peace

Powell's visit to Asia expected to bring peace

Last Friday, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, Richard Boucher, announced State Secretary Colin Powell's plan to visit Asia. During his eight-day tour of Asian nations starting July 26, Powell is to visit India, Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Powell's visit is particularly aimed at attending the ASEAN Regional Forum to be held in Brunei on July 31.

We express hope that Powell's visit would contribute to the creation of peace in this region and the rest of the world. During his tour of India and Pakistan, he will try to ease tensions between the two countries over Kashmir.

More importantly, Powell's visit would create a friendly atmosphere between the U.S. and Southeast Asian countries. Hopefully, the visit would not revive a sense of mutual suspicion, particularly with regard to the Sept. 11 attacks on the U.S.

-- Kompas, Jakarta