President Megawati arrives in Pakistan on official visit
President Megawati arrives in Pakistan on official visit
Sadaqat Jan, Associated Press, Islamabad
Indonesia's President Megawati Soekarnoputri arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for a three-day official visit to boost ties between the world's two largest Muslim nations, officials said.
Megawati arrived at the airport in the capital Islamabad with a more than 80-strong delegation, and was due to meet Pakistan's President Gen. Pervez Musharraf for talks on Monday, expected to cover issues ranging from counterterrorism and the war in Iraq to trade and economic cooperation.
Traveling from China, the Indonesian leader was received at the airport by Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz and Education Minister Zubayda Jalal.
Megawati's visit, her first to Pakistan since she took office in July 2001, comes days after Pakistan handed over to Jakarta six Indonesians militants with suspected ties to the al-Qaeda- linked terror group, Jamaah Islamiyah. They were arrested during raids in the southern city of Karachi in September.
Both countries are considered hotspots in the U.S.-led "war against terrorism," and both have cooperated with Washington. But this was the first reported occasion that high-profile terror suspects have been handed from one of the countries to the other.
"Both are under pressure from extremist groups," said Talat Masood, a Pakistani military and political analyst. "They both want to advance economically and develop their political institutions" in a transition toward democracy from military rule.
"There are a lot of similarities between them so they want to share their experiences and also widen their interaction in economic, political and commercial spheres" as well as in defense and intelligence-sharing, he said.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesman Masood Khan said Friday the two countries would sign agreements to improve bilateral cooperation, including in counterterrorism. Both leaders "want to take their relationship to higher plane of understanding and cooperation," he said.
In August, Indonesia's trade minister visited Pakistan to explore the possibility of enhancing trade and launching joint industrial projects.
Megawati will also meet with Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali and other senior officials during her visit.
Musharraf visited Indonesia in April 2000, months after he toppled an elected government in a bloodless coup to take power in Pakistan. He met with Megawati on the sidelines of the 57- member Organization of the Islamic Conference meeting in Malaysia in October.
Both the Asian countries have predominantly Muslim populations: Indonesia with 210 million people in all, and Pakistan with 140 million.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Indonesian president will visit a heavy industrial park in Taxila, 20 kilometers west of Islamabad, followed by a press briefing for Indonesian reporters who joined her visit.
Megawati and her entourage are scheduled to leave Islamabad at 8:10 p.m. local time and are expected to arrive at the Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta at 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday.