President Yudhoyono to meet with Singaporean leader in Cebu

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 12/08/2006 1:25 PM

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Cebu, Philippines

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will hold several bilateral meetings with other leaders on the sidelines the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and East Asian Summit in Cebu, the Philippines, from Dec. 11-13.

Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda said there were plans for President Yudhoyono to meet with several leaders during the summit, but only a bilateral meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has been confirmed.

He said plans for the bilateral talks between Indonesia and Singapore had been worked out during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Hanoi last month, when the two leaders agreed on the need to speed up negotiations on special economic zones, extradition treaty and defense agreement.

""There were several meetings on how to implement the special economic zones before the Hanoi meeting, so several things need to be reported to both leaders on this issue,"" Hassan told The Jakarta Post.

Both leaders signed an agreement earlier this year on economic cooperation that will include arrangements for the establishment of special economic zones in Indonesian territory.

The agreement will open up more opportunities for Singaporean manufacturers to invest in Batam and surrounding Riau Islands province, by including the establishment of special economic zones in Batam and Bintan islands to facilitate investment in these areas by companies from Singapore.

In addition to discussing special economic zones, the two will talk about how to reconcile differences over an extradition treaty. There has been some impatience expressed in Indonesia over the slow progress of talks on the treaty.

Hassan said a new round of talks was ongoing.

""The result of the talks will be reported to both leaders,"" he said.

In an apparent sign of impatience and displeasure with Singapore over the stalled treaty, members of the House of Representatives have asked the government to delay sending an ambassador to Singapore or even to cut ties with the neighboring country.

Senior ASEAN officials meeting today at the Mactan Shangri La in Cebu agreed to the contents of the grouping's convention on counterterrorism, which will open the way for regional cooperation to fight terrorism.

""Officials have all agreed with the contents. We also agreed to fight the root causes of terrorism. We will eradicate it with soft power rather than hard power. So the convention mentions, among other things, the rehabilitation of convicts who have served their terms,"" Indonesian Foreign Ministry secretary-general Imron Cotan said.

He said discussions on a declaration on migrant workers were still ongoing.

ASEAN foreign ministers will meet Friday to discuss the results of the talks before submitting them to the ASEAN leaders, who will meet from Dec. 11-12.

At the end of the summit, ASEAN leaders are expected to issue a statement on the acceleration of attaining an ASEAN community from 2020 to 2015 and on energy security.

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