| Subject: RT: U.S. Moves to Reinstate
Indonesia Military Aid
Also: AFP - Rice signals move to restore
US-Indonesian military training ties
U.S. Moves to Reinstate Indonesia Military Aid Thu Feb 17, 2005 01:28
PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on
Thursday she is moving to reinstate U.S. military training assistance for
Indonesia, an important step toward restoring full military ties.
Formal military relations were cut with the world's biggest Muslim
nation more than a decade ago because of alleged human rights violations
by Indonesian forces, although there has been some low-level training
cooperation.
The Bush administration tried to revive close ties with Indonesia's
military during its first term which ended in January but the effort
faltered after two American school teachers were murdered in the province
of Papua in 2002.
Investigations by police and non-governmental organizations pointed to
Indonesian military involvement in the murders.
The U.S. Congress made any resumption of U.S. military training --
called the International Military Education and Training or IMET program
-- for Indonesian officers dependent on certification by the secretary of
state that Jakarta was helping the FBI investigate the killings.
"I am in the latter stages of consultations with members of
Congress about a decision to certify that Indonesia has met the
cooperation requirement set forth in the law ... so that it is possible to
restore full IMET privileges to Indonesia," Rice told the U.S. Senate
Appropriations Committee.
"I think it's a good time to do that. They just had presidential
election, a successful democratic exercise in a huge country with a huge
Muslim population," she said.
U.S. military aid was cut after Indonesian troops killed 57
demonstrators in East Timor in 1991, when the territory was part of
Indonesia.
Some counterterrorism training for Indonesian forces was resumed after
the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks as Washington sought to enlist Jakarta as an
ally in the war on terrorism. But key members of Congress have been
concerned that the Indonesian military has not sufficiently improved its
rights record.
Rice said Indonesian authorities had been "cooperating well enough
(with the FBI) that we've been able to get an indictment in this (school
teachers') case."
Rice gave no figure but IMET funds tend to be modest, belying what
supporters say is their significant impact in forging close relations
between a highly trained, professional, civilian-led U.S. military and the
armies of countries Washington is trying to influence.
Although often overshadowed by other Asian giants like China and Japan,
Indonesia is the most populous Muslim nation and a key to regional
stability which for 50 years had close military ties with the United
States.
The tsunami that devastated parts of Indonesia and other Asian nations
in December as well as Jakarta's progress in moving from an authoritarian
state to a more democratic system has given the administration a new
opening to push again for closer U.S.-Indonesia military ties.
Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz visited Indonesia last month to
review tsunami damage and announce a desire for closer military ties.
Washington made a temporary exception to military aid restrictions to
provide spare parts for planes delivering relief to tsunami victims.
--
AFP Rice signals move to restore US-Indonesian military training
ties
2 hours, 19 minutes ago
WASHINGTON (AFP) - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (news - web
sites) signaled that the United States was ready to restore full military
training ties with Indonesia that were downgraded 13 years ago.
Rice told a Senate panel she was in the "final stages" of
consultations with Congress on certifying Indonesia as eligible to benefit
from the International Military Education and Training (IMET) program.
"I think it's a good time to do that," she said, citing what
she called Indonesia's "successful" presidential election last
year and cooperation in the investigation of the 2002 murder of two
Americans in Indonesia.
The administration of President George W. Bush (news - web sites) has
been eager to restore military links with Indonesia, largely to help
combat terrorism, but has run so far into a reluctant Congress.
But Rice, testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee on the
proposed 2006 budget, expressed confidence the move would go through.
"I do believe the time may have come to do that," she said.
The top US diplomat said the move, which requires congressional
approval, would "restore full IMET privileges to Indonesia" that
were suspended in 1992 amid concerns over Indonesia's human rights record.
The United States stepped up sanctions in 1999 after the Indonesian
army killed some 1,500 people during East Timor (news - web sites)'s drive
for independence.
Ties soured further in 2002 when the Indonesian army was accused of
blocking US investigations into the killing of two US schoolteachers in
the country's Papua province.
Relations took an upturn, however, after the United States mounted a
massive military relief operation to help Indonesian victims of the
December 26 tsunami that wreaked havoc, mostly in Aceh province.
Washington partially lifted an embargo on the supply of military
hardware to Indonesia, delivering spare parts for five Hercules transport
planes so they could be used to aid tsunami victims.
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