RI, U.S. boost antiterror ties

JAKARTA: The Indonesian and the U.S. militaries have agreed to step up cooperation to combat terrorism by exchanging information and enhance the capacity of antiterror units.

Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said on Sunday the agreement was reached in a meeting between with U.S. Asia-Pacific commander Adm. Thomas Fargo in Hawaii last week.

"Even though each country has different ways of handling terrorism, we (Indonesia and the United States) have agreed to boost cooperation in dealing with this extraordinary crime," Endriartono said after observing a rehearsal of the TNI's 59th anniversary commemoration at Halim Perdanakusuma airbase in East Jakarta.

Endriartono visited Hawaii from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1., during which he explained several measures that Indonesia has taken in fighting global terrorism, including a joint operation with neighboring Malaysia and Singapore to guard the Strait of Malacca.

Fargo once suggested that U.S. troops might assist, with patrols, in the strait to deter terrorists who might target shipping in the international waterway. In Indonesia, the military backs up the National Police when it comes to fighting terrorism. --JP