U.S., RI eye improvement of military ties
U.S., RI eye improvement of military ties
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The governments of Indonesia and the United States see the
possibility of improved military ties following the significant
role of U.S. troops in tsunami relief operations in Aceh.
This view was expressed by visiting U.S. Deputy Defense
Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, a former ambassador to Indonesia, and
Indonesian Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono on Sunday.
The U.S. Congress cut military ties with Indonesia in 1999
over the violence in East Timor by militias backed by the
Indonesian Military (TNI).
"We understand the restrictions proposed by Congress. It is
not only the issue of past rights abuses, but we would also like
to see how the TNI has endeavored to put itself under the control
of civilian supremacy," Wolfowitz said.
The visiting deputy defense secretary toured Aceh on Saturday
to view the damage caused by the tsunami.
The U.S. Congress has lifted the military embargo on spare
parts for Hercules planes now being used in relief operations.
"We need to think about how we can strengthen this newly
elected democratic government, strengthen the civilian defense
minister ... to help build the kind of defense institution that
will ensure in the future that the Indonesian military, like our
military, is a loyal function of a democratic government,"
Wolfowitz said.
"We need to work closely with the Congress," he said. "These
are issues that the (U.S.) people feel deeply about, but I hope
they will perhaps see them in a new light, not only because of
what we need to do in Aceh but equally importantly because of
what is happening here on the political front."
In the wake of the Dec. 26 tsunami, the U.S. deployed over
14,000 personnel, warships, helicopters and other aircraft to
Aceh. The province had been closed to foreigners because of
conflict between the government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM).
Juwono said he hoped for U.S. assistance in military training
and budget management, which was "probably more important than
lethal and combat training and education".
However, he implied the strained defense budget of about US$1
billion would not enable Indonesia to buy military equipment from
the U.S. even if the embargo was lifted.
Juwono said his job was to "reconfigure the Indonesian defense
force, particularly the Army, so that they will be more
accountable to a democratic government".
Wolfowitz said cutting contacts with Indonesian military
officers "only makes the problems much worse".
A lifting of the military embargo and improved military ties
would "make it possible (for Indonesia) to respond much more
quickly and effectively in a crisis like this one", he said.