RELATIONS WITH INDONESIAN NAVY IMPROVING

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 000706


DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/RSP, PM, PM/PPA
NSC FOR E.PHU
USPACOM FOR ADMIRAL KEATING AND ADMIRAL WILLARD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/20/2019
TAGS: PREL MARR PGOV MASS ID
SUBJECT: RELATIONS WITH INDONESIAN NAVY IMPROVING

REF: A. JAKARTA 0261

B. JAKARTA 0385

Classified By: Ambassador Cameron R. Hume, reasons 1.4(b+d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The U.S.-Indonesian navy-navy relationship
has improved enormously in the past two years. When senior
U.S. Navy leaders come to Indonesia to participate in the
Fleet Review in August, they will find a new willingness to
listen and engage. Cooperation is still less robust than
with other services, but there is solid progress. The
maritime radar surveillance network provided with U.S.
assistance is on track. The TNI Navy is increasingly active
in bilateral activities, educational and training exchanges
and flag officer visits. Marine-marine engagement is strong.
The Fleet Review offers an excellent opportunity to cement
these ties further. END SUMMARY

LEADERSHIP MORE OPEN, MORE SERIOUS


2. (C) In the past two years, the Indonesian Armed Forces
(TNI) Navy leadership has become more open. They are willing
to listen and tQiscuss complex issues. Key change occurred
in November 2007 with the replacement of the crotchety,
nationalistic Admiral Slamet Soebijanto as Indonesia's Naval
Chief of Staff. Vice Admiral Sumardjono, who replaced him
for a mere half year, made the decision to proceed with the
surveillance radar networks with Section 1206 assistance and
incorporated the program into the TNI Navy's planning.
Admiral Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno, who succeeded him in July
2008, has allowed the program to proceed and is marshaling
the budgetary and personnel resources to maintain and operate
the stations once they are installed.


3. (SBU) The positive change can be seen in TNI Navy
leaders' support for the International Military Education and
Training (IMET) program. The TNI Navy now sends an officer
annually to the U.S. Naval War College and other schools,
totaling ten programs in FY2009. The TNI Navy's nomination
of quality candidates is a welcome sign of its seriousness.
The improvement is also visible in the steady increase in
Flag Officer visits, which reached a peak of ten in 2008.
These visits provide an opportunity to exchange views,
cultivate personal relationships and strengthen lines of
communication.

MORE EVENTS BRING CONTACT, BUILD TRUST


4. (SBU) The Theater Security Cooperation Plan(TSCP),agreed
annually in the Bilateral Defense Discussions (BDD) between
PACOM and the entire TNI, now encompasses some 130 events
across all services and 32 with the TNI Navy. These
activities have rekindled navy-navy engagement, helping to
build trust. Previously the TNI Navy had rejected most TSCP
activities.


5. (SBU) Other recent signs of warming relations include:

-- The port visit of the USS LASSEN (DDG 82) to Bali in 2008
was the first by a U.S. naval vessel since the terrorist
bombings of 2002.

-- Survey operations between NAVOCEANO and the Indonesian
Hydrographic and Oceanographic Office (DISHIDROS) were
completed in February 2009 in support of Indonesia's upcoming
World Ocean Conference in May 2009 and Fleet Review in August

2009.

-- Although the TNI Navy has not returned to Cooperation
Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT),PACOM's largest annual
navy-navy event with Indonesia, the TNI Navy does participate
in a scaled-down version called the Naval Engagement Activity
(NEA).

MARINE-MARINE COOPERATION


6. (SBU) The Indonesian Marine Corps and the U.S. Marine
Corps (USMC) have historically had a strong relationship.
Prior to sanctions, the two Marine Corps conducted multiple
military exchanges and exercises. Through IMET, Indonesia
sends two officer students per year to year-long USMC
in-residence schools. Bilateral training occurs at other
levels, including full platoon and company exchanges. An
Indonesian Marine infantry company participated for the first
time in the multi-national RIMPAC Exercise in 2008 in Hawaii.
Indonesia welcomes engagement with the USMC, as the training
is seldom available elsewhere and the perceived international
prestige is unmatched.

U.S. ASSISTANCE HELPED BUILD TRUST


7. (SBU) Assistance under Section 1206 has been a major
factor in changing TNI-Navy attitudes about mil-mil
cooperation with the United States. Section 1206 assistance
to Indonesia will total $54 million through FY2009, and the
TNI-Navy is its main recipient. Although U.S. assistance
foots most of the bill, the TNI Navy will need to keep it
operational. Foreign Military Financing (FMF) funding is too
limited for Navy needs. The Section 1206 assistance is
therefore the first major U.S. military assistance to reach
the TNI Navy since the lifting of sanctions.

LOOKING FORWARD


8. (C) We must continue to impress upon the Indonesian Naval
leadership our desire to strengthen navy-navy ties. But the
TNI Navy will set the pace. As the key defender of
Indonesia's territory, the TNI Navy is intensely
nationalistic. But they share with us an interest in
regional stability and counterterrorism; professionalization
and modernization; humanitarian assistance and disaster
response; and international peacekeeping operations. These
areas of common interest provide ample room to strengthen
understanding and deepen our bilateral cooperation.


9. (C) The Indonesian Fleet Review will occur on August
12-20, 2009 in Manado, North Sulawesi and will include a
Maritime Security Seminar. The U.S. Navy's decision to
participate at senior levels in the review is an excellent
step toward solidifying this developing relationship.

HUME