President meets with ASEAN envoys

President meets with ASEAN envoys

JAKARTA (JP): As an indication of the continued importance
Indonesia places on regional cooperation, newly elected President
Abdurrahman Wahid met with nine envoys from the member states of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Friday.

Abdurrahman hinted during the meeting that his first trip
abroad would be to attend the ASEAN summit in Manila next month.

Malaysia's ambassador to Indonesia, Rastam Muhammad Isa, said
after the meeting that Abdurrahman expressed his desire to
enhance cooperation between the 10-member regional grouping,
adding that Abdurrahman "expressed his willingness to meet with
ASEAN leaders during the informal meeting in Manila in November".

Indonesia is a founding member of the regional grouping, which
also includes Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ASEAN has been considered the cornerstone of Indonesia's
foreign policy in the past.

There were fears that with Indonesia's attention diverted by
its pressing political and economic crises, its primary role in
ASEAN would be diminished.

However, the 70-minute meeting with the ASEAN envoys on Friday
seemed to signal the importance of the grouping to the new
government.

Rastam said Abdurrahman also expressed his desire to visit
Malaysia and meet with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

The ambassador, however, did not say if a meeting between the
two leaders would be arranged in the near future. (05)