INDONESIA-UNITED STATES STRATEGIC CONSULTATIONS ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PARTNERSHIP

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 JAKARTA 002081 SIPDIS DEPT FOR P (L.ROSENBERGER),E, EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, OES, EEB NSC FOR J.BADER AND D.WALTON; MCC FOR ISMAIL E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/21/2019 TAGS: EAID SENV PREL PARM KGHG MARR OVIP BURNS WILLIAM),ID SUBJECT: INDONESIA-UNITED STATES STRATEGIC CONSULTATIONS ON THE COMPREHENSIVE PARTNERSHIP JAKARTA 00002081 001.2 OF 005 Classified By: Charge d'Affiares Ted Osius, reasons 1.4 (b+d). ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: During the first session of the December 11 inaugural U.S.-Indonesia Strategic Consultations, Under Secretary Bill Burns led the U.S. delegation in a discussion of bilateral cooperation under the Comprehensive Partnership (CP). The U.S. and Indonesian delegations discussed ways to move forward on key elements of the CP's Plan of Action, including the Science and Technology Agreement (STA), education, health and environmental cooperation, economic ties, and the normalization of mil-to-mil relations. Both sides expressed the desire for a genuine partnership and the need to make maximum tangible progress prior to POTUS's planned visit to Indonesia next year. The two sides stressed the importance of strengthening people-to-people ties. U/S Burns recognized Indonesia's important leadership role in the G20 and other international fora, and hoped the CP would grow to include cooperation on regional and global issues such as non-proliferation and climate change. The U.S. and Indonesian delegations agreed to work to find a way to resume U.S. cooperation with Indonesian Army Special Forces (KOPASSUS). END SUMMARY. U.S.-INDONESIA STRATEGIC CONSULTATIONS ¶2. (SBU) Under Secretary Bill Burns led the USG delegation to the first U.S.-Indonesia Strategic Consultations on December 11 in Jakarta. The Consultations are a key part of regular, increased high-level engagement under the United States-Indonesia Comprehensive Partnership, and will help deepen cooperation on bilateral, regional and global issues. This message reports the first session of the Consultations, which focused on bilateral cooperation on education, the environment, economics, development, science and technology, and mil-mil relations. Mission will report via septel on the results of the second session, which dealt with cooperation on regional and international issues. THE COMPREHENSIVE PARTNERSHIP ¶3. (SBU) DEPLU Director General for European and American Affairs Ambassador Retno Marsudi praised U/S Burns' participation in the Bali Democracy Forum the previous day, noting the importance of U.S. support for this initiative. She underscored the importance of these strategic consultations - the first of their kind between the United States and Indonesia - and was grateful for holding the discussion even before the CP was officially launched. U/S Burns agreed, and noted the importance of such consultations to building a true partnership, which means a real two-way street. Discussing the status of the Comprehensive Partnership Plan of Action (POA) as well as Joint Presidential Statement, U/S Burns and Ambassador Marsudi agreed to strive for as many concrete accomplishments as possible before a POTUS visit to Indonesia and the CP's official launch. The CP is an opportunity to bring tangible benefits to the people of both Indonesia and the United States and to enhance cooperation on important global challenges and in multilateral fora. ¶4. (SBU) U/S Burns and EAP DAS Scot Marciel informed the Government of Indonesia (GOI) that the USG was still reviewing Indonesia's October counter draft of the POA and hoped to provide the U.S. response in early January. The GOI agreed on the importance of picking the right time to announce the CP, Ambassador Marsudi said, and was ready to continue discussion of the draft POA. On the Joint Presidential Statement, Ambassador Marsudi said the GOI understood the USG preference for a short document. She asked how the USG views the nature of the statement, noting that the GOI prefers this to be separate from the Comprehensive Partnership POA. U/S Burns explained that we would work with the White House, which would have the lead on documents related to the President's visit. PEACE CORPS ¶5. (SBU) Both sides agreed that the Peace Corps agreement (to be signed that afternoon) was a concrete and important step JAKARTA 00002081 002.2 OF 005 toward strengthening people-to-people exchanges between the U.S. and Indonesia. U/S Burns called it the quintessential U.S. people-to-people program and looked forward to Peace Corps' implementation of its program. Ambassador Marsudi welcomed Peace Corps' initial focus on education in East Java, particularly English language training in madrasahs. This would promote people-to-people contacts between elements of Indonesia's Muslim majority population with Americans, she highlighted. Ambassador Marsudi noted that we should continue to find ways to facilitate people-to-people contact in both directions between the United States and Indonesia. ¶6. (SBU) The GOI hopes that both sides will get to work immediately on an implementation agreement. Indonesia's lead agency for Peace Corps, the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) is already organizing an interagency meeting including the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Regional Affairs and the Coordinating Ministry of Social Welfare to work on program implementation. This team would probably submit a draft implementation agreement later this month, Ambassador Marsudi said. Both U/S Burns and Ambassador Hume responded that the USG does not anticipate any delay in implementation. They noted that the Peace Corps has already selected a director for Indonesia and unofficially started recruiting volunteers - a clear sign of Peace Corps enthusiasm. INTERFAITH DIALOGUE ¶7. (SBU) Both sides characterized the planned January 2010 interfaith dialogue as both relevant and greatly needed. Referring to Indonesia as a plural, heterogeneous society, Ambassador Marsudi revealed that Indonesia had begun a similar dialogue with Norway and President Yudhoyono would discuss the possibility of an interfaith dialogue with Angela Merkel during an upcoming visit to Germany. However, she stressed that the GOI ascribes particular meaning and significance to a U.S.-Indonesia interfaith dialogue. In addition to the 20 representatives from both our sides, she said the GOI would like to invite 10 additional representatives from the region. U/S Burns pointed out that President Obama is committed to building bridges between people, and this is a first step to put into motion the spirit of the President's Cairo speech. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AGREEMENT (STA) ¶8. (SBU) Ambassador Marsudi explained that two issues - Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (GRTKF) and Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs) - had delayed finalization of a Science and Technology agreement. U/S Burns expressed confidence that remaining gaps could be bridged. He recognized Indonesia's concerns, but reiterated that the USG views these issues as more multilateral than bilateral in nature. DAS Marciel noted these same issues are also holding back a U.S.-ASEAN S&T Agreement, and that a U.S.-Indonesia agreement would pave the way for this important regional agreement. ¶9. (SBU) Ambassador Marsudi recognized that although the USG does not want these issues in the STA, Indonesia still does. She noted there is continuing informal communication between USG and GOI negotiators and that they look forward to the next round of negotiations in January 2010. U/S Burns informed her President Obama has appointed several science envoys, and pressed for conclusion of the STA ahead of Special Envoy Bruce Alberts' visit to Indonesia in mid-January. HEALTH COOPERATION ¶10. (SBU) U/S Burns underscored the real practical value of working together on health issues, and looked forward to reaching agreement on the Indonesia-U.S. Center for Biomedical Research (IUC). U/S Burns stressed that health cooperation is a two-way street, and the proposed IUC provides an opportunity to put our health cooperation on a new footing. During meetings in July and September, both sides agreed to strengthen health cooperation and to have the JAKARTA 00002081 003.2 OF 005 IUC as the new face of health cooperation, Ambassador Marsudi said. At this point, forward movement hinged on more technical issues, she pointed out, and said that she had asked the Directorate General for International Treaties to discuss these with the Ministry of Health. U/S Burns expressed confidence that the remaining issues could be resolved quickly. CLIMATE CHANGE COOPERATION ¶11. (SBU) Both sides expressed a strong desire to cooperate on climate change. U/S Burns applauded President Yudhoyono's bold emissions targets and conveyed U.S. readiness to support Indonesia in meeting those targets. There is much enthusiasm in working with Indonesia on climate issues, he noted, and we stand ready with considerable resources and expertise, especially in the area of forest and peat management. He informed the GOI team that a USG interagency team will visit Indonesia in January to evaluate how best to support Indonesia on these issues. There is a lot more we can do together, he emphasized, and the U.S. hopes we can do a better job of coordinating with Indonesia. ¶12. (SBU) Ambassador Marsudi welcomed further discussion of this issue after Copenhagen. It might not be easy to achieve Indonesia's emissions target, she said, but Indonesia is serious about it. Indonesia does not want Copenhagen to fail, and hopes for at least a political agreement. She also said Indonesia will be discussing the climate change funding proposal put forward by Mexico. In addition, she revealed the GOI is considering - depending upon Copenhagen's outcomes - hosting a climate change meeting next year to push forward a global agreement. Kennedy Simanjuntak, Bappenas Director for Bilateral Funding, noted Indonesia is currently developing a climate change roadmap and welcomes coordination with and U.S. support for climate change funding through the new Indonesia Climate Change Trust Fund (ICCTF). EDUCATION ¶13. (SBU) Both sides agreed that educational cooperation has great potential and is a cornerstone of the Comprehensive Partnership. DEPLU Director for North America Bunyan Saptomo urged doubling the number of Indonesian students in the United States, who currently constitute only one-tenth of the number of Chinese students there. Bunyan pointed to promising developments at promoting study in the United States - including an agreement to provide scholarships for junior Indonesian diplomats - but noted the number of Indonesian students in the United States is low compared to Australia. There are 7,000 Indonesian students in the U.S. while there are 8,000 Indonesian students in the city of Melbourne alone. However, perceived difficulties in obtaining visas remain an issue in bringing more students to the U.S., Ambassador Marsudi and Director Saptomo both asserted. ¶14. (SBU) U/S Burns affirmed the goal of doubling the number of Indonesian students in the U.S., as well as the number of U.S. students studying in Indonesia. We have worked hard to help Indonesian students expand their English language skills and want to expand our English language teaching programs. The Education USA program is helping potential students learn about studying in the U.S. and the Indonesia Fulbright program is the largest in East Asia, U/S Burns noted. In addition, we are looking at ways to expand university partnerships. There is no other area with more potential to build people-to-people relationships than education, he stressed. Acknowledging that visas remain a concern in many parts of the world, U/S Burns and Ambassador Hume pointed out that many people do not understand the application process. However, over 80 per cent of Indonesian student applicants receive visas. This ratio is the same for those studying at community colleges as at high level research institutions. MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION (MCC) ¶15. (SBU) Ambassador Marsudi welcomed the news that the MCC Board had reselected Indonesia as a Compact candidate JAKARTA 00002081 004.2 OF 005 country. The MCC program has been very successful so far, Bappenas' Simanjuntak said, and the GOI is working hard to develop the MCC Compact program. In addition to a Constraints Analysis study completed last month, Ambassador Marsudi noted the GOI has also established an MCC steering committee. ¶16. (SBU) U/S Burns noted this is a competitive process with a limited pot of funds. He stressed the need to make tangible progress over the coming year and welcomed the GOI's target to complete a Compact program concept paper by next summer. He and Ambassador Marsudi agreed to redouble efforts so that when President Obama visits Indonesia next summer we will be well along in outlining the key components of a final Compact program. TRADE AND INVESTMENT CLIMATE ¶17. (SBU) U/S Burns pointed out that trade and investment is the weakest link in the bilateral relationship. U/S Burns stressed that better economic ties are essential for a stronger overall relationship. He noted that an updated OPIC agreement, which has both practical and symbolic value, is a discrete opportunity to make Indonesia much more attractive to U.S. business. Ambassador Marsudi and her colleagues acknowledged that trade and investment remains a problematic area. The GOI finds the annual U.S.-Indonesia Trade and Investment Council a very useful forum, they said, and is looking forward to productive OPIC negotiations next month in Indonesia. SECURITY-MILITARY RELATIONS ¶18. (C) Both sides articulated the same goal: normal, healthy military-to-military relations and cooperation. However, Brigadier General Syaiful Anwar, Director for International Cooperation at the Indonesian Department of Defense (DEPHAN), pointed out the KOPASSUS issue continues to hinder the normalization of military-to-military relations. U/S Burns noted the enormous growth in U.S.-Indonesia mil-mil relations and increased mil-mil engagement over the last five years, and said the Indonesian-proposed Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) provided a framework to expand cooperation. U/S Burns pressed for finalizing the agreement n the next few months. Brig.-Gen. Anwar agreed on the importance of the DCA, but explained Indonesia's preference for finalizing it after a Joint Presidential Statement. This would place the DCA firmly under the rubric of the Comprehensive Partnership and provide domestic political cover, said Ambassador Marsudi. U/S Burns and Ambassador Hume stressed, however, that the DCA reflects the advances we have made in our mil-to-mil relations, and finalizing it before POTUS' visit would provide a foundation for even greater increases to our security cooperation. Delaying this, meanwhile, would strengthen those who do not want closer U.S.-Indonesian defense cooperation. ¶19. (C) U/S Burns stated the United States has been very pleased with cooperation under the U.S.-Indonesia Bilateral Defense Dialogue (USIBDD) during the last five years, including on disaster relief, peacekeeping operations and maritime security. Speaking for the Indonesia Department of Defense, Brigadier General Syaiful Anwar urged the continuance of the USIBDD and the Indonesia-U.S. Strategic Dialogue (IUSD). Both, Anwar said, were very useful forums for advancing military cooperation. He appreciated past and current assistance, including C-130 maintenance, peacekeeping operations, radar surveillance systems, and support for Indonesia's National Defense University. NORMALIZING MILITARY RELATIONS ¶20. (C) Opening a special session in which newly appointed KOPASSUS commander Brigadier General Lodewijk Freidrich Paulus and other KOPASSUS officials joined the discussion, Ambassador Marsudi acknowledged the difficulty of changing others' views of the Army's Special Forces (KOPASSUS),but stressed that Indonesia had changed significantly in the last 10 years, and will continue to change. She stressed that JAKARTA 00002081 005.2 OF 005 such reforms were useless if others did not acknowledge those steps, and pleaded for the United States to see Indonesia for what it is today. Brigadier General Subekti (one name only), Director for Strategic Analysis at DEPHAN, explained KOPASSUS' important role, and noted the danger of its capacity diminishing because of lack of training and engagement. ¶21. (C) BG Subekti briefed U/S Burns on military reforms and urged the U.S. Military to resume cooperation with KOPASSUS. BG Subekti underscored that KOPASSUS was fully under civilian control. He explained that KOPASSUS personnel were integrated into the regular military chain of command and, unlike in the past, KOPASSUS did not conduct operations independent of the rest of the military. Subekti noted that all KOPASSUS personnel receive extensive human rights training throughout their careers. He explained that KOPASSUS had a critical role in counterterrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster response, and peacekeeping--including 125 personnel serving with UNIFIL in Lebanon. KOPASSUS had already conducted training and exercises with several foreign forces, including Australia and the UK. BG Subketi added that China had several times proposed cooperation with KOPASSUS but that the GOI has yet to take Beijing up on the offer. ¶22. (C) U/S Burns thanked BG Loedwijk and his colleagues for their briefing, and said the USG understood the importance of finding a way to reengage KOPASSUS. He acknowledged that KOPASSUS had undertaken significant reforms to ensure that its personnel did not commit human rights violations in the future. However, he pointed out that holding some KOPASSUS personnel accountable for past human rights abuses was also important, and that more could be done to address concerns about accountability. ¶23. (U) U/S Burns cleared this message. OSIUS