Soeharto arrives in Istambul for D-8 summit

Soeharto arrives in Istambul for D-8 summit

ISTANBUL, Turkey (JP): Indonesian President Soeharto arrived
here yesterday afternoon to attend a summit of eight developing
nations tomorrow on economic cooperation projects aimed at
alleviating poverty.

President Soeharto, who is accompanied by Foreign Minister
Ali Alatas and State Secretary/Minister Moerdiono and other
senior officials, is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with
several leaders today.

The meeting is set to launch the Developing-Eight (D-8)
economic cooperation group, bringing together Bangladesh, Egypt,
Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey.

"The weekend summit is to discuss cooperation projects in
trade, industry and other economic sectors," an official said
here last night.

"Indonesia itself will offer cooperation in technology
development," Moerdiono told Indonesian newsmen.

President Soeharto, who will address the meeting immediately
after the opening speech by Turkish Prime Minister Necmettin
Erbakan, will share Indonesian experiences in poverty alleviation
with other delegates.

But hopes of economic gains among member countries have been
overshadowed by doubts about Prime Minister Erbakan's hold on
power, Reuters quoted analysts here as saying.

Erbakan shrugged off his domestic crisis and doubts about the
D-8 project with flowing rhetoric before the summit.

"The D-8 is the organization of a new world. It is a turning
point in human history, because a new world is being founded.
These moves are being made in the name of all humanity," Erbakan
told his Islam-based Welfare Party this week.

Turkey has failed in its efforts to assemble all eight heads
of state or government for the final summit day tomorrow which
follows more talks between senior officials yesterday and a
meeting of foreign ministers today.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak will not attend the summit
and he is to be represented by Foreign Minister Amr Moussa,
according to Reuters.

Outgoing Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was due to
attend the summit.

Erbakan visited all D-8 countries except Bangladesh soon after
coming to power last June. He fostered economic links with
projects such as a US$23 billion gas deal with Iran, drawing
strong criticism from NATO-member Turkey's Western allies.

Political analysts say the D-8 group, devised as a potential
developing world partner to the G-7 group of rich countries, has
been ill thought out in Erbakan's haste to strengthen Turkey's
links with the Islamic world.

"The D-8 gives the impression of a group which has been
founded hurriedly, without investigating adequately the G-7
experience," Istanbul University professor Hasmet Basar wrote in
the daily Milliyet.

Among planned areas of cooperation, Egypt will oversee trade,
Turkey will coordinate industry proposals, Pakistan will be
responsible for agriculture, Nigeria will oversee energy plans
and Indonesia will be responsible for human resources.

Iran will oversee telecommunication projects, Bangladesh will
deal with rural development and Malaysia will focus on
privatization, banking and Islamic insurance, or 'takaful'.