Southwest Pacific dialog in Bali

JAKARTA: Indonesia will host the initial Southwest Pacific talks in Bali, which will open on Saturday with a meeting of senior officials.

The foreign ministry announced in its press release that Director General for Asia-Pacific and Africa Makarim Wibisono will preside over the convention, which is to be opened by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda.

Delegations from Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and host Indonesia will attend the Bali convention. A ministerial meeting will follow next month.

The dialog was promulgated during the ASEAN summit on information in Singapore in November 2000, with an aim to improve cooperation among countries in the southwest pacific region. The move has materialized in the exchange of information and concerted methods to face current world issues, such as terrorism, human-trafficking, transnational crimes and regional security problems.

Economic and trade issues, technical cooperation, investment and sustainable development will also be the highlight of the talks. -- JP