INDONESIAN PRESIDENT YUDHOYONO’S AGREEMENTS IN TOKYO

On June 2nd, Prime Minister Koizumi met with visiting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono of Indonesia. They made five joint statements on this occasion:

1) Joint Statement: Partners for New Challenges

2) Joint Announcement on the Cooperation between the Two Countries on Disaster Reduction

3) Joint Announcement on the Commencement of the Negotiations on the Japan-Indonesia Economic Partnership Agreement

4) Joint Announcement of the Japan-Indonesia Strategic Investment Action Plan (SIAP)

5) Japan-Indonesia Joint Announcement on Maritime Affairs

The full texts of these statements are available at the MOFA website.

News reports on the summit have focused on the possibility that Japan and Indonesia will begin negotiations on an FTA agreement. However, Mayumi Negishi and Kanako Tahahara of the Japan Times are reporting that on the UNSC issue, Japan and Indonesia did not reach an agreement:

“During their meeting, Koizumi asked Yudhoyono to support Japan's bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council. Yudhoyono declined for the time being. He was quoted by a Foreign Ministry official as saying, ‘Japan deserves a seat from its post-World War II record of service toward nations in Asia and around the world. But we also have internal concerns, and I would like to make the appropriate decision when the time comes.’ In Indonesia, U.N. reform is still under debate.”