INDONESIA ACCEPTS WAY FORWARD RE NAMRU FACILITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001065 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/22/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV AMED ID SUBJECT: INDONESIA ACCEPTS WAY FORWARD RE NAMRU FACILITY REF: JAKARTA 1017 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Ambassador Cameron R. Hume, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (U) This is an Action Request -- Please see para 8. ¶2. (C) SUMMARY: The Ambassador met with a senior GOI official on June 23 to discuss the Naval Medical Research Facility (NAMRU-2) located in Jakarta. Ambassador Retno Marsudi said the GOI would issue six-month visa extensions to NAMRU staff. In the meantime, the Indonesian government wanted to work with the USG with the aim of resolving all outstanding issues in this six-month period. The Ambassador underlined that the USG was committed to moving forward as soon as possible. Action Request below asks that Department take advantage of this important opening and work to arrange, by mid-July, an inter-agency delegation visit to Jakarta to discuss outstanding issues. Mission will send in additional recommendations on next steps via septel to feed into the planned June 25 Sub-IPC meeting in Washington. END SUMMARY. ¶3. (C) The Ambassador met with Ambassador Retno Marsudi, Director General for American and European Affairs at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DEPLU),on June 23. Marsudi began by stating that the GOI would issue six-month visa extensions to members of NAMRU staff. The Ambassador thanked her for this information, noting that this was a positive step forward. ¶4. (C) Marsudi added that the Indonesian government would like to use this six month timeframe to iron out the remaining issues pertaining to NAMRU. Issues that needed to be resolved included what sort of structure NAMRU would operate under. The GOI, for example, would like NAMRU to work within some sort of larger structure that would include other civilian-led elements, Indonesian and U.S., focused on the issue of infectious diseases. Exactly what sort of structure this would be needed to be discussed and elaborated on by both sides. ¶5. (C) Continuing, Marsudi noted that another major issue that needed to be worked out was how to proceed with an updated USG-GOI Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the operations of the facility given that this agreement had lapsed some time back. Finally, the GOI would like to work out an agreement with the U.S. regarding the facility and material transfer. ¶6. (C) Until an accord was reached, Ambassador Marsudi noted that NAMRU should: -- (1) Continue to abide by all Indonesian laws and regulations, including the GOI's March 2008 letter preventing NAMRU from conducting research re samples or sending samples overseas; and, -- (2) Maintain a low-profile and should not publicize any of its work. ¶7. (C) The Ambassador commented that he agreed that a number of issues needed to be resolved and the USG was committed to working with Indonesia on the way forward. He noted that the U.S. was aiming to send an inter-agency team to Jakarta in July. This team would deal with such issues as the joint research laboratory structure, the MOU way forward and next steps regarding material transfer. These were complex issues, but the U.S. would aim to work flexibly and quickly in order to come up with solutions that were acceptable to both sides. Ambassador Marsudi said she deeply appreciated this commitment and would brief Indonesia's inter-agency working group on the discussion. ¶8. (C) ACTION REQUEST -- The news regarding the visa extensions is positive and indicates that the GOI--after much USG effort--is assuming more of a constructive position regarding NAMRU than was previously the case. Department is requested to convene an inter-agency meeting re NAMRU and the joint laboratory as soon as possible. The key objective of this meeting would be for the USG to move forward with sending an inter-agency team to Jakarta by mid-July to meet with the GOI to begin working through the issues related to NAMRU and plans for a joint laboratory. We should take advantage of this opening. ¶9. (C) Mission's Inter-agency Health Team and NAMRU in JAKARTA 00001065 002 OF 002 Jakarta strongly support this collaborative effort and urge that the Sub-IPC meeting decide to send a team here to meet with the Indonesian government. Mission will send in additional recommendations on next steps via septel. END ACTION REQUEST. HUME