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evin Rudd recently visited Indonesia for talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. The majority of the Indonesian people have started fasting and they need halal food made from beef like rendang, satay, burgers, etc.

 Rudd'€™s predecessor harmed relations between Indonesia and Australia by banning the export of live cattle and beef, after a short film was shown on Australian TV on how Indonesians put down cows. Aljeezirah TV at that time aired a film whereby they interviewed Australian cattle ranchers who were livid, and many went bankrupt.

Australia forgets that they are not the only country exporting excellent beef. Mexico, Colombia and Brazil are hot on Australia'€™s heels to export their cattle to Indonesia.

I have lived in Latin America and have tasted their beef, which frankly speaking is juicier and has more taste.

The previous PM also torpedoed a military cooperation agreement between Australia and Indonesia that Rudd has painstakingly worked on.

She then imported American GIs into Australia, proving that the Australian army is incapable of protecting their country.

Rudd has a lot of work to do to repair relations between Indonesia and Australia, which frankly speaking are severely damaged.

Unfortunately, the previous PM did not trust their neighbors and looked for assistance from far away countries. She obviously never heard of the expression: It is preferable to have a friendly neighbor than a friend who lives far away. Good luck Rudd, you have a gigantic task ahead of you to improve and repair damaged political, military and economic relations.

Lynna van der Zee-Oehmke
Haiphong, Vietnam