Susilo and entourage off to Chile for APEC Summit

Susilo and entourage off to Chile for APEC Summit

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono left the country on Thursday
for a five-day overseas trip to attend the 10th Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Santiago.

Departing from Halim Perdanakusuma air base, the President
took along a 80-strong entourage, including Coordinating Minister
for the Economy Aburizal Bakrie, Minister of Energy and Natural
Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan
Wirayuda and Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi on his second
foreign trip since taking office on Oct. 20.

It will be the first international forum Susilo has attended
as president. He is also scheduled to hold bilateral talks with
several world leaders to introduce his administration's program
and develop better relations with the countries on the sidelines
of the summit.

First Lady Kristiani Herawati was among his entourage.

The President is also expected to address an economic seminar
after the summit, where he will deliver a speech on the
challenges of security on the world economy.

Susilo is scheduled to arrive in Santiago on Friday. He will
meet with the Indonesian community upon arrival.

On the second day of his visit, he will hold bilateral talks
with Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, Australian Prime
Minister John Howard, Chilean President Ricardo Lagos Escobar,
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and Chinese President Hu
Jin Tao.

On Sunday, Susilo will meet Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi, Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin, Russian
President Vladimir Putin, United States President George W. Bush
and Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.

Foreign minister Hassan Wirayuda said that apart from
discussing general topics, President Susilo would address
standing issues with each country, including the ongoing military
embargo imposed by the U.S., the Indonesian migrant workers issue
in Malaysia and military industries cooperation with China.

The President is scheduled to return to Jakarta on Tuesday
evening.

Less than a week upon arrival from Santiago, Susilo will fly
to Vientiane for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) Summit, scheduled to take place on Nov. 27.

In his first national speech since taking office on Wednesday,
the President stressed his administration's effort to improve
international cooperation, particularly in ASEAN, APEC, the
Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC) and the Asia-Africa
forum.

He hopes to learn the extent of the countries' commitment to
investing in Indonesia and to other forms of economic cooperation
in the first 100 days of his administration.

Susilo made his first trip abroad as President to Cairo, where
he attended the funeral of Palestine President Yasser Arafat, who
died last week.