| Subject: JP: RI hopes U.S. visit will boost
military ties
Jakarta Post
March 23, 2005
News & Views
RI hopes U.S. visit will boost military ties
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono says the U.S. government and
legislators now have a better understanding of the Indonesian Military (TNI)
after his delegation's week-long visit to the country.
After reporting to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday about
last week's visit, Juwono said influential U.S. figures now better
understood the TNI and its role in the country's democracy.
"They, including Senators Patrick J. Leahy and Russel Feingold who
are the most critical (of the military), now understand the problems faced
by the TNI," he said.
The delegation informed legislators about Indonesia's progress in
establishing democracy, the reform drive within the military and the role
of the military in economic and democratic development, the minister said.
Juwono also mentioned the problems faced by the TNI, including its
limited state budget allocation, which is deemed sufficient to cover only
half of the military's expenditure.
He compared the country's defense budget of Rp 21 trillion (US$2.28
billion) a year with that of Singapore, which has a budget equivalent to
Rp 45 trillion a year and Thailand's, of Rp 50 trillion.
"I told them that I led the best underpaid defense force in Asia.
They were very surprised that with such a small defense budget, Indonesia
remained unified despite the large number of citizens and our large
territory," Juwono said.
Juwono's visit to the U.S. was to encourage the government to fully
resume military ties with Indonesia. The U.S. recently decided to
reinstate the International Military Education and Training (IMET) program
with Indonesia.
The Indonesian delegation met with U.S. Minister of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld, Deputy Minister of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, who has just been
promoted to head the World Bank, Deputy State Secretary Robert B.
Zoelllick, Senator Richard Lugar, Senator Christopher Bond, Senator
Russell Feingold, U.N. Secretary Kofi Annan and former U.S. state
secretary Henry Kissinger.
The U.S. has yet to annul its decision banning the sale of military
equipment and spare parts to Indonesia.
Juwono said that the government hoped to be able to buy new military
equipment and spare parts from the U.S. after the resumption of the IMET
program, which is expected to start again by September at the latest.
"This year is for (the resumption of) the IMET program. Other
programs, such as the Foreign Military Equipment Sale and Foreign Military
Financial Program, depend on the resumption of the training. If this
occurs, and is in line with economic growth, we could be allowed to buy
new defense equipment," he said.
Kissinger had promised to convince the U.S. Senate to speedily approve
the resumption of IMET with Indonesia by September, he said.
Juwono said he told U.S. legislators that the legal processes
concerning the TNI's involvement in the 1999 human rights violations in
East Timor were still ongoing although most of the convicts, particularly
TNI personnel, had been acquitted by lower courts.
The inability of the courts to convict Indonesian Military officers for
war crimes is one reason why the U.S Congress has voted to continue the
arms embargo.
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