INDONESIAN AND MALAYSIAN LEADERS IN NEW ZEALAND:

UNCLAS WELLINGTON 000329

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR EAP/ANP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL NZ
SUBJECT: INDONESIAN AND MALAYSIAN LEADERS IN NEW ZEALAND:
SOUNDING OUT ASIAN TIES


1. (U) Summary. The April 6-7 visit to New Zealand by
Indonesian Prime Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and
the March 30-April 1 visit by Malaysian Prime Minister
Abdullah Ahmed Badawi (Abdullah) were largely symbolic, but
provided the GoNZ an opportunity to highlight its efforts to
strengthen alliances within Asia. On April 18, New Zealand
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) Deputy Secretary
John McKinnon briefed the diplomatic corps on the two visits,
outlining their accomplishments. Highlights included the
launch of free trade negotiations with Malaysia and positive
discussions on NZ's possible participation in the upcoming
East Asia Summit. End summary.

Schedules
--------------


2. (U) Both SBY and Abdullah met with the Governor-General,
held bilateral talks with Prime Minister Clark, gave press
conferences and attended a dinner hosted by Parliament. Both
also had a session with the Cabinet, as they had each brought
a significant number of Parliamentarians to NZ, and both met
their respective communities in NZ. Abdullah met with
Opposition National Party leader Don Brash and also presented
a lecture in Auckland on Islam.

Malaysia: Free Trade
--------------


3. (U) The Malaysian visit produced a greater number of
outcomes, primarily the announcement that the countries would
launch free trade negotiations, with a target date of
mid-2006 for completion. The GoNZ also announced that it
would establish its fourth off-shore education consultant in
Kuala Lumpur. (Note: The other three are in Washington, DC,
Beijing and Brussels.) The PM and Abdullah exchanged views on
the environment, regional issues and the upcoming East Asia
Summit. (Note: NZ has indicated that Parliament is likely to
sign the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation by the end of the
year, which is a criterion for being invited to participate
in the summit.)

Indonesia: Handshakes
--------------


4. (U) SBY's visit was delayed a week due to the March 28
earthquake off Sumatra. As McKinnon said, the Indonesian
visit was more focused on "the basics" than the Malaysian,
largely because NZ "does not have the same depth and history"
in the bilateral relationship. McKinnon noted that the visit
by Indonesia's first democratically elected leader presented
a "good photo-opportunity" for NZ. The GoNZ and SBY worked
to identify areas where they could enlarge the relationship,
agreeing on education, direct air services, cooperation on
the inter-faith dialogue and parliamentary exchanges. Other
pronouncements included decisions to elevate the two
countries' trade and economic commission to the Ministerial
level and to further police cooperation on cross-border
migration and similar issues. SBY also visited the National
Museum "Te Papa Tongarewa" to see a demonstration of natural
disaster mitigation techniques.


5. (SBU) Comment: While overall the visits were light on
concrete deliverables, symbolism was rife, emphasizing NZ's
expanded interests in Asian economic and political affairs.
Pointing to NZ's increasing Muslim community, McKinnon noted
that having Muslim national leaders visit provided the GoNZ
with a range of views on issues facing Muslims in Asia.
While PM Clark has had contact with both leaders in
international fora, this was the first visit by a Malaysian
head of government since 1996 and the first by an Indonesian
leader since 2001. Media reporting on both visits was
sparse, focusing, as befits an election year, on the use of
police resources to protect visiting dignitaries.
Burnett