INDONESIA -- PRESIDENT'S REMARKS ON THE U.S. ELECTIONS

UNCLAS JAKARTA 002044 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR S-ES/O, EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS NSC FOR E. PHU E.O. 12958: NA TAGS: PREL PGOV OVIP ID SUBJECT: INDONESIA -- PRESIDENT'S REMARKS ON THE U.S. ELECTIONS ¶1. (U) On November 5, Indonesian President Yudhoyono made the following remarks regarding the U.S. elections. The text of his remarks is contained in para two. ¶2. (U) Begin text: PRESIDENT SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO'S REMARKS ON THE U.S. ELECTIONS JAKARTA, INDONESIA, NOVEMBER 5, 2008 The U.S. election results have now been announced with certainty and Senator McCain has also congratulated Senator Obama. I extend our heartfelt congratulations to the people of America for their obvious enthusiasm in exercising their democratic rights and I congratulate Senator Barack Obama for his successful election result. This is a very historic election for the United States in many ways. It is also of great importance to the world. Indonesia hopes that President-elect Barack Obama will lead the U.S. as a force for peace, for progress, for spreading good, and for reforming the international system. The world community is now bound together in the midst of enormous global challenges: food shortages, energy security, financial crisis and climate change. None of these great issues of our time can be solved without the U.S. on board, and certainly, none of these issues can be solved by the U.S. alone. We need to work together to deliver a new age of global cooperation. Indonesians have a special affection for President-elect Barack Obama. He had spent his childhood in Indonesia for some four years. He knows our people and our culture well. I look forward to working closely with President-elect Barack Obama to strengthen our bilateral relations and to constructively address the global challenges of the 21st century. Thank you. End text. HUME