[ETAN-key] Indonesia and U.S. sign defence framework arrangement

[John M Miller]

Indonesia aims for further military ties with US

2010-06-10 13:49 (UTC)

JAKARTA, June 10 (Reuters) - Indonesia and the United States said on 
Thursday they had signed a defence framework arrangement to pave the 
way for further cooperation in military training, defence procurement 
and maritime security.

However, a U.S. ban on military training since the 1990s for 
Indonesia's notorious special forces unit Kopassus remains in place, 
a U.S. embassy spokesman said.

Security cooperation is something both countries want to improve, and 
Indonesia's defence minister said in March he was optimistic that the 
ban on training for Kopassus could be lifted.

Ties between Washington and Jakarta cooled in the 1990s over rights 
abuses, often linked to Kopassus in East Timor, Aceh and Papua, but 
the relationship has warmed during the presidency of Barack Obama, 
who spent part of his childhood in Indonesia.

'We have been talking for some time both internally and with the 
Indonesian government about how and under what conditions we might 
pursue re-engagement with Kopassus that is in accordance with our 
law, values and interests,' said Tristram Perry at the U.S. embassy in Jakarta.

Washington has gradually lifted military aid and sales restrictions 
and Indonesia's defence minister said in March about 2,800 Indonesian 
military officials were being trained in the United States.

Despite the lifting of some U.S. restrictions, Jakarta has shopped 
elsewhere, turning to Russia for jet fighters and China for missiles. 
It is now talking to U.S. defence firm Lockheed Martin about buying 
transport planes.

Indonesia is expected to ask for more economic and military aid 
during a planned visit by Obama, which has already been delayed twice 
in 2010 and is now targeted for late in the year.

Indonesia has been a frontline state in the U.S.-led fight against 
Islamist extremism, and has had considerable success in quashing 
militants after deadly bombings by radical organisation Jemaah 
Islamiah and splinter groups, which want to build a regional Islamic caliphate.

(Reporting by Olivia Rondonuwu; Editing by Neil Chatterjee and Alex Richardson)

((olivia.rondonuwu at thomsonreuters.com; Tel:+6221 384 6364 ext. 909; 
Reuters Messaging: olivia.rondonuwu.reuters.com at reuters.net)) 
Keywords: INDONESIA US/DEFENCE

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John M. Miller, National Coordinator
East Timor & Indonesia Action Network (ETAN)
PO Box 21873, Brooklyn, NY 11202-1873 USA
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