U.S. Senate member meets Hamzah

U.S. Senate member meets Hamzah

JAKARTA: Vice President Hamzah Haz met on Wednesday with Jonah
Blank, a member of the United States Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, who has been assigned to gather information on the
latest situation in Indonesia.

Blank paid a courtesy call on Hamzah following trips to
various areas across the archipelago over the past few weeks.

"Indonesia and the U.S are close friends, and I'm here to seek
ways to put the friendship on a firmer basis.

"My responsibility is to provide advice to the chairman (of
the foreign relation committee) of what we could do as friends to
Indonesia and how to strengthen the relationship on a wide range
of issues" he told reporters without disclosing further details.

In his meeting with Hamzah, Blank was accompanied by U.S.
Ambassador to Indonesia Ralph L. Boyce.--JP