INDONESIA: U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY OF DEFENCE PAUL WOLFOWITZ SAYS U.S. IS IN AGREEMENT WITH INDONESIA'S END-OF-MARCH TARGET FOR WITHDRAWAL OF FOREIGN RELIEF FORCES
Record ID:
222865
INDONESIA: U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY OF DEFENCE PAUL WOLFOWITZ SAYS U.S. IS IN AGREEMENT WITH INDONESIA'S END-OF-MARCH TARGET FOR WITHDRAWAL OF FOREIGN RELIEF FORCES
- Title: INDONESIA: U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY OF DEFENCE PAUL WOLFOWITZ SAYS U.S. IS IN AGREEMENT WITH INDONESIA'S END-OF-MARCH TARGET FOR WITHDRAWAL OF FOREIGN RELIEF FORCES
- Date: 16th January 2005
- Summary: (W3) JAKARTA, INDONESIA (JANUARY 16, 2005) (REUTERS) 1. UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF DEFENCE PAUL WOLFOWITZ ENTERING ROOM, SHAKING HANDS WITH INDONESIAN DEFENCE MINISTER JUWONO SUDARSONO 0.06 2. WOLFOWITZ AND SUDARSONO WALKING TO PODIUM FOR NEWS CONFERENCE 0.13 3. JOURNALISTS 0.16 4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) U. S. SECRETARY OF DEFENCE PAUL WOLFOWITZ, SAYING: "So the sooner that this burden can be passed off to other people and most of all to the Indonesian themselves, we will be happier. But as long as, for example, large number of helicopters were required, at least for the moment we're the only country that can provide large number of helicopters. We're looking at things like fixing roads so that we don't depend on helicopters for so much longer. But I repeat, I think we all need to look at this in terms of how to fill a need that is just indescribable from a humanitarian point of view." 0.50 5. WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS 0.54 6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) INDONESIAN DEFENCE MINISTER JUWONO SUDARSONO, SAYING: "We would like to emphasise that March 26 is not a deadline for involvement of foreign military personnel in the relief effort. It is a benchmark for the Indonesian government to improve and accelerate its relief efforts so that by March the 26th the large part of the burden of the relief effort will be carried by the Indonesian government and the Indonesian authorities on the ground. Foreign military assistance, foreign military operations providing relief and rehabilitation will be allowed to continue albeit on a reduced scale." 1.44 7. CAMERA CREWS 1.48 8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) WOLFOWITZ, SAYING: "Both the GAM and the Indonesian government and the Acehnese people most importantly will look at this whole issue if we can be successful in meeting the immediate needs. And if we fail in meeting the immediate needs, I think all those old issues will be exacerbated." 2.08 9. WS: WOLFOWITZ AND SUDARSONO AT THE PODIUM 2.12 10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) WOLFOWITZ, SAYING: "I'm afraid there's nothing that can provide anything like absolute security against the extraordinary intimidation that the enemy is undertaking and I would underscore that there was intimation in Afghanistan the Taliban threatened all kinds of violence against the people who registered and the people who voted. But I don't believe they ever got around to shooting election workers on the street or kidnapping the children of political candidates. What is phenomenal to me is that in the face of this brutality you still have 7,000 Iraqis I believe who have put their names on the list to run in these elections and the last number I saw was 80,000 Iraqis volunteering to be election workers. The desire in that country to have elections and to vote is passionate and the fact that in some parts of the country the vote may be suppressed is I think attributable to that intimidation and we will provide as much as we can with troops in terms of countering that but I'm afraid there's no way to prevent all of it" 3.19 11. WOLFOWITZ SHAKING HANDS WITH SUDARSONO AND WALKING OFF 3.28 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 31st January 2005 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: JAKARTA, INDONESIA
- Country: Indonesia
- Reuters ID: LVA1X2BB3CYS4T6SO6HT0YFLZ9A0
- Story Text: Deputy U.S. Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz says
the U.S. agrees with Indonesia's end-of-March target for
the withdrawal of foreign forces, and also touches on the
upcoming Iraqi elections.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defence Paul Wolfowitz
said on Sunday (January 16) that the United States is in
agreement with Indonesia's end-of-March target for the
withdrawal of foreign forces.
"The sooner that this burden can be passed off to other
people and most of all to the Indonesian themselves, we
will be happier. But as long as, for example, large number
of helicopters were required, at least for the moment we're
the only country that can provide large number of
helicopters. We're looking at things like fixing roads so
that we don't depend on helicopters for so much longer. But
I repeat, I think we all need to look at this in terms of
how to fill a need that is just indescribable from a
humanitarian point of view," said Wolfowitz.
The Pentagon has deployed some 15,000 servicemen aboard
a fleet of naval vessels carrying nearly 60 helicopters to
deliver emergency aid to tsunami-ravaged countries around
the Indian Ocean rim, mostly to Aceh.
Almost all of the 110,000 Indonesians killed in the
calamity, two-thirds of the 162,000 fatalities in the whole
region, were in Aceh province on the northern tip of
Sumatra island.
Speaking in capital Jakarta after wrapping up his visit
to the province a day earlier, Wolfowitz was assured by
Indonesia's defence minister Juwono Sudarsono that March 26
is not a deadline for the withdrawal of foreign military
forces.
"We would like to emphasise that March 26 is not a
deadline for involvement of foreign military personnel in
the relief effort. It is a benchmark for Indonesian
government to improve and accelerate its relief efforts so
that by March the 26th the large part of the burden of the
relief effort will be carried by the Indonesian government
and the Indonesian authorities on the ground. Foreign
military assistance, foreign military operations providing
relief and rehabilitation will be allowed to continue but
on a reduced scale," Sudarsono said at the joint news
conference with Wolfowitz.
On Jakarta's quest for a lasting truce with Aceh
separatists to end their 28-year rebellion, Wolfowitz said
fulfilling the immediate needs of the Acehnese people is a
crucial precondition.
"Both the GAM and the Indonesian government and the
Acehnese people most importantly will look at this whole
issue if we can be successful in meeting the immediate
needs. And if we fail in meeting the immediate needs, I
think all those old issues will be exacerbated," he said.
Steering off the tsunami efforts, Wolfowitz also spoke
of the upcoming Iraqi elections, scheduled for January 30,
saying that an absolute security against intimidators
cannot be guaranteed.
"I'm afraid there's nothing that can provide anything
like absolute security against the extraordinary
intimidation that the enemy is undertaking and I would
underscore that there was intimation in Afghanistan the
Taliban threatened all kinds of violence against the people
who registered and the people who voted. But I don't
believe they ever got around to shooting election workers
on the street or kidnapping the children of political
candidates," he said.
However, despite the threat of violence, Wolfowitz
remained positive over the upcoming elections.
"What is phenomenal to me is that in the face of this
brutality you still have 7,000 Iraqis I believe who have
put their names on the list to run in these elections and
the last number I saw was 80,000 Iraqis volunteering to be
election workers. The desire in that country to have
elections and to vote is passionate," he said.
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