Security Treaty to be Signed with Indonesia
Security pact to aid Indons with nuclear power
Mark Forbes, Jakarta
November 8, 2006
AUSTRALIA will help Indonesia to develop a nuclear program, conduct joint border-protection patrols, expand military and intelligence ties and agree to suppress Papuan independence supporters under a historic security treaty to be signed on Monday.
The treaty will be the most comprehensive signed between the nations, but will not include a formal military alliance, sources close to the negotiations said.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer will fly to Indonesia to sign the treaty with his counterpart, Hassan Wirayuda.
Its details were finalised when they met in New York last month.
Sources said the treaty marked a "new era" in the relationship, putting to rest the diplomatic rift caused when Australia granted 43 Papuans asylum this year.
Both countries will agree to respect each other's territorial integrity. The treaty will recognise Indonesian sovereignty over Papua and state that neither country would allow itself to become a "staging post" for separatist activities, a clause clearly aimed at an Australian crackdown down on anti-Indonesian activists.
The Indonesia and Australia Framework for Security Co-operation includes a commitment for both to help each other in developing nuclear power for peaceful uses.
It opens the way for Australia to sell uranium to Indonesia, which is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and is planning to begin building its first nuclear power plant in 2010. Both nations will also commit to acting to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction to other nations in the region.
Intelligence sharing would be boosted, along with joint counter-terrorism and border protection operations involving naval and surveillance patrols.
Military exercises and joint training, including with Indonesia's feared Kopassus unit, will increase.
Co-operation in law enforcement will also be increased, with Australia providing resources to Indonesian police, prosecutors and immigration and customs officials. Both militaries will be instructed to draw up programs for greater co-operation.
Under six broad principles, the treaty states both nations should be treated as equals, respect the other's values and not interfere in each other's internal affairs.
The treaty commits both countries to increasing understanding of one another, with education and advertising campaigns to reduce public mistrust.
Announcing the negotiations for a treaty earlier this year, Mr Downer promised that the process would be transparent.
"People will be able to make public submissions long before this treaty is formally ratified," he said.
But diplomatic sources confirmed that the treaty's details were privately finalised last month, and final approval from the Indonesian cabinet was simply a formality. Arrangements for the foreign ministers to meet on the island of Lombok have already been made.
Australia, under former prime minister Paul Keating, signed a security treaty with Indonesia in 1995 but it was torn up by Jakarta in 1999 amid tensions over Australia's involvement in East Timor's independence.
The treaty marks a dramatic turnaround after months of diplomatic turmoil fuelled by Australia's granting asylum to 43 Papuan independence supporters. In response, Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono froze relations with Australia for three months.
To read the original article from The Age, click on:
The Age
Mark Forbes, Jakarta
November 8, 2006
AUSTRALIA will help Indonesia to develop a nuclear program, conduct joint border-protection patrols, expand military and intelligence ties and agree to suppress Papuan independence supporters under a historic security treaty to be signed on Monday.
The treaty will be the most comprehensive signed between the nations, but will not include a formal military alliance, sources close to the negotiations said.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer will fly to Indonesia to sign the treaty with his counterpart, Hassan Wirayuda.
Its details were finalised when they met in New York last month.
Sources said the treaty marked a "new era" in the relationship, putting to rest the diplomatic rift caused when Australia granted 43 Papuans asylum this year.
Both countries will agree to respect each other's territorial integrity. The treaty will recognise Indonesian sovereignty over Papua and state that neither country would allow itself to become a "staging post" for separatist activities, a clause clearly aimed at an Australian crackdown down on anti-Indonesian activists.
The Indonesia and Australia Framework for Security Co-operation includes a commitment for both to help each other in developing nuclear power for peaceful uses.
It opens the way for Australia to sell uranium to Indonesia, which is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and is planning to begin building its first nuclear power plant in 2010. Both nations will also commit to acting to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction to other nations in the region.
Intelligence sharing would be boosted, along with joint counter-terrorism and border protection operations involving naval and surveillance patrols.
Military exercises and joint training, including with Indonesia's feared Kopassus unit, will increase.
Co-operation in law enforcement will also be increased, with Australia providing resources to Indonesian police, prosecutors and immigration and customs officials. Both militaries will be instructed to draw up programs for greater co-operation.
Under six broad principles, the treaty states both nations should be treated as equals, respect the other's values and not interfere in each other's internal affairs.
The treaty commits both countries to increasing understanding of one another, with education and advertising campaigns to reduce public mistrust.
Announcing the negotiations for a treaty earlier this year, Mr Downer promised that the process would be transparent.
"People will be able to make public submissions long before this treaty is formally ratified," he said.
But diplomatic sources confirmed that the treaty's details were privately finalised last month, and final approval from the Indonesian cabinet was simply a formality. Arrangements for the foreign ministers to meet on the island of Lombok have already been made.
Australia, under former prime minister Paul Keating, signed a security treaty with Indonesia in 1995 but it was torn up by Jakarta in 1999 amid tensions over Australia's involvement in East Timor's independence.
The treaty marks a dramatic turnaround after months of diplomatic turmoil fuelled by Australia's granting asylum to 43 Papuan independence supporters. In response, Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono froze relations with Australia for three months.
To read the original article from The Age, click on:
The Age
posted by Pax Christi @ Wednesday, November 08, 2006
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