Abdul Khalik , The Jakarta Post
The United States and Indonesia have shared many common views about problems in North Korea, Myanmar and the Middle East, evidence of the growing strength of the two countries' bilateral relations.
After updating President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on the latest developments in the Korean peninsula, visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill said Indonesia had demonstrated support for the six-party talks to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.
"We discussed our views of the nuclear situation in North Korea and other international and regional issues, and in particular the very positive state of the Indonesia-U.S. relationship," he told reporters at the presidential office.
Indonesia will respect the six-party talks, which include the U.S., China, Russia, Japan, and North and South Korea, as the path to solving problems in the peninsula, Hill said.
"We did not discuss any mediator role for Indonesia or for anyone else in the current situation with North Korea," the U.S. chief negotiator for the six-party talks said.
Presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal also said Indonesia respected the talks as the appropriate process for resolving the issue.
The senior U.S. diplomat also met with Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda and Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Kristiarto Soeryo Legowo said as well as hearing Hill's update on North Korea, Hassan had conveyed Indonesia's position on Myanmar.
"We conveyed to him that Indonesia and ASEAN would continue a constructive engagement with Myanmar, and we will give the democratic process in Myanmar a chance as long it is credible," he said.
Hill praised Indonesia's role in Middle Eastern issues and its initiative to hold in Jakarta this year an Asian-African conference on capacity building for the Palestinian people.
The U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs also praised efforts by Indonesia and Timor Leste to improve their relationship and heal past wounds.
The United States, he said, would accept the findings of a truth commission inquiry into killings by Indonesian troops during Timor Leste's independence from Jakarta, despite a boycott of the process by the United Nations and criticism by rights groups.
The joint Indonesian and East Timorese commission is expected to present its final report to the presidents of the two countries within weeks. Its members have worked for months to produce a balanced report.
"If it's good enough for East Timor (Timor Leste) and Indonesia, it should be good enough for us," Hill was quoted as saying by AP.
Hill's comments are the strongest indication yet the United States will not allow past rights abuses to hurt its growing ties with Indonesia, a large Muslim nation seen as a counterbalance to China's growing clout in Asia.
"What we want to see is reconciliation between Indonesia and East Timor," he said.
"This is the way to go. If you look at East Timor's future, it needs a good relationship with Indonesia."
The Commission of Truth and Friendship was set up in 2005 to head off demands for a UN-backed international tribunal to try those responsible for the violence during the 1999 independence ballot.
At least 1,000 people were killed by vengeful militia assisted by Indonesian troops following East Timor's overwhelming vote for independence after 24 years of often brutal rule, according to a previous UN inquiry and scores of witnesses.
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