RI role in Afghanistan depends on merit

RI role in Afghanistan depends on merit

Priscilla Cheung, Associated Press, New York

Indonesia's role in any international force in Afghanistan depends on whether the post-Taliban government "merits the support," the Indonesian foreign minister said Friday.

Hassan Wirayuda said he has talked to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, as well as his counterparts from the United States, Britain and Pakistan, among others, about contributing troops to a future multinational force in Afghanistan.

Although Indonesia "stands ready" to contribute troops, it has "to look closely at what will happen in the political process" in establishing a transition Afghan government, he told a news conference in New York, where he attended the annual UN General Assembly debate.

The UN envoy for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, is working to get Afghan factions together for a meeting to form a transitional government after the Taliban regime abandoned the capital of Kabul following a month of U.S. bombing.

A multinational force is expected to fill the security vacuum left by the Taliban. Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Turkey and other countries have already pledged troops.

Brahimi has said that it would take too long to put together a UN peacekeeping force.

Any decision by Indonesia, which has the world's largest Muslim population, to contribute peacekeepers to a multinational force is likely to please both the U.S. administration and other Muslim nations.

Wirayuda said Indonesia first wants to see if the eventual Afghan government "merits the support on the security side."

"We are open-minded about this process, and we'll see whether Indonesia will eventually participate in the coalition process, or simply relegate ourselves to possible participation in the future in a UN peacekeeping force," he added.

In Indonesia, Brig. Gen. Tono Suratman said Friday an infantry battalion of between 700 and 1,000 soldiers, including paramedics, liaison officers and others, was being readied to leave for Afghanistan whenever the United Nations asks.