Indonesia rules out diplomatic ties with Israel

JAKARTA (AFP): Indonesia has ruled out diplomatic links with Israel although President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his foreign secretary have kept alive the possibility of future meetings focused on setting up a Palestinian state.

"Any communication between Indonesian and Israeli officials will be oriented to the objective of assisting the Palestinian people in gaining their independence," Susilo said at a press conference late Wednesday.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom last month held a discreet first meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirayuda during a UN summit in New York, prompting speculation the two countries were moving towards closer ties.

Susilo and Hassan were asked about relations with Israel during Wednesday's press conference with King Abdullah of Jordan who ended his two-day visit to the country on Thursday.

"It is possible for us to have certain contacts with Israel provided they are made with the main objective of helping solve the Palestinian issue," Hassan said.

The Israeli government is trying to garner diplomatic rewards after its landmark withdrawal from occupied Gaza. Indonesia, like Turkey, offers the advantage of being a large democracy run bymoderate Muslim leaders, with almost 90 percent of its 220 million people following moderate Islam.

Indonesia has no diplomatic ties with Israel and has regularly issued statements of support for the Palestinian cause. The government in Jakarta expressed sorrow at the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and hailed him a hero.

Muslim activists often stage anti-Israeli protests in the capital and other Indonesian cities to condemn Israeli violence and attacks on Palestinians.

But the Indonesian foreign ministry suggested Thursday that Jakarta was willing to play a role in the peace process.

Meetings were possible as part of Jakarta's efforts to "promote a Palestinian force with a freedom recognized by Israel and that can live side by side peacefully," said foreign ministry spokesman Yuri Thamrin.

"For that purpose, we have to hold talks with both sides. If you want to play a role as a mediator, you have to be accepted by both sides," he told AFP.

Thamrin said both countries so far had not made "any immediate plan" to set up a date or a place for new talks.

But any future talks between Indonesia and Israel should not be regarded as an "acknowledgement of a diplomatic status" of the two nations, Thamrin said. (**)

Jakarta Post, 13 October 2005