19 Jul 01 11:27 East Timor: Border Security, Cooperation Talks Underway in Jakarta

A 13-member East Timorese delegation began two days of border security and cooperation talks with Indonesian officials in Jakarta Thursday, as the UN-administered territory moves toward its first election at the end of August.

An official said the meeting of the Joint Committee on border issues, established in September, would focus on a range of "practical problems" along the frontier separating East Timor from Indonesian West Timor.

The bilateral committee was expected to break into four working groups to deal with issues of policing and security, border demarcation and regulation, and the movement of people and goods.

An Indonesian army officer in West Timor was reported Wednesday as having said the two sides were considering closing the border for at least one week leading up to East Timor's Aug. 30 elections for security reasons.

Dili's delegation to the Jakarta talks includes both UN civilian and peacekeeping officials and East Timor's defense force chief, Brigadier General Taur Matan Ruak.

SAS -Lusa-

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