RI delays opening ties with Israel

RI delays opening ties with Israel

By Budiman Moerdijat

ABU DHABI (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid vowed here on
Friday that Jakarta would not open trade ties with Israel until
the Jewish state reached a final peace settlement with the
Palestinians.

"I told (Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh) that Indonesia
will not open a representative trade office in Israel until there
is lasting peace in the Middle East," Abdurrahman said during a
press briefing in his presidential suite on Friday afternoon,
shortly after his arrival here from a two-day visit to Yemen.

Abdurrahman held talks with the Yemeni leader on Thursday
evening.

His latest remarks belie statements he made soon after taking
office in 1999 that Indonesia would open trade ties with Israel,
and appear to be an attempt to win the hearts of the host
countries during his current Middle East tour, which will take
him to Yemen, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

Despite the public uproar, Abdurrahman and his aides have in
the past defended the possibility of opening trade ties with
Israel, using the argument that the move would help attract
Jewish investment from the United States.

Israel jumped at the prospect of widening ties with Indonesia,
which has the world's largest Muslim population, sending a
delegation to Jakarta that included representatives from the
Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Federation of Israeli
Chambers of Commerce.

Israeli envoys based in Singapore also visited Jakarta and met
with state officials last year.

Abdurrahman has embarked on his two-week tour of the Middle
East and North African countries with the goal of luring
investment and bolstering trade with the region.

Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D., one of several Cabinet
ministers traveling with the President, said earlier he would
lobby Arab countries to purchase small arms and military planes
from Indonesia.

Mahfud said on Friday his counterpart in Yemen would
visit Indonesia in May "to further discuss" possible military
cooperation between the two countries.

He also said that his meeting with the Yemeni defense minister
on Thursday resulted in an agreement that Yemen's military would
import military uniforms from Indonesia.

He added that Yemen would invite "instructors" from the
Indonesian Army's Special Force and the Indonesian Navy to the
country to help modernize its army.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab, who also is traveling
with the President, said Indonesia and Yemen agreed to set up a
joint commission to bolster diplomatic and trade ties.

He said members of the commission would meet every six months
and that the first meeting would be held in Jakarta in April or
May.

When asked to comment on the agenda for his one-day visit to
the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Abdurrahman said: "There is
nothing special. I am stopping by here because I have already
visited Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and some other countries in
the area."

He was quick to add, however, that the visit was aimed at
strengthening trade ties between the two countries.

Abdurrahman is scheduled to meet with UAE President Zayed
Sulthan Al Nahyan before leaving for Cairo on Saturday afternoon
to attend a summit of eight developing countries on Sunday.

Abdurrahman will cap his trip by performing the haj pilgrimage
in Saudi Arabia.