Indonesia downplays withdrawal of invitations

Indonesia downplays withdrawal of invitations

INDONESIAN officials have sought to downplay Singapore's cancelled invitations for 100 armed forces officers to the Singapore Airshow as well as a cancelled meeting, saying they would not read too much into it.

Defence Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro and Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) commander General Moeldoko on Monday told reporters separately that they did not think the ongoing row would affect bilateral relations.

"Neighbours will be there forever," Mr Purnomo said at the Defence Ministry.

"They cancelled the invitation, we did not go. It's as simple as that," he added, when asked if Indonesia was offended.

"Let's not make it complicated."

The cancellations, announced on Sunday, came amid a diplomatic row over Jakarta's decision to name a navy ship KRI Usman Harun, after the two Indonesian marines who bombed MacDonald House in Orchard Road in 1965.

The blast left three people dead and 33 others hurt.

Marines Osman Mohamed Ali and Harun Said were tried, convicted and hanged in 1968. Indonesia buried them with full military honours and declared them national heroes.

Last week, five Singapore ministers raised concerns following reports that a ship would be named after the pair, who carried out attacks in Singapore that killed innocent civilians.

But Indonesia said its decision was final and in line with the tradition of honouring its heroes, a point both Mr Purnomo and Gen Moeldoko stressed on Monday.

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Indonesia's Defence Ministry said on Sunday that Singapore's Second Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing had cancelled a scheduled meeting with deputy defence minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin this week and, as a result, Mr Sjafrie decided not to attend the air show.

Invitations to Gen Moeldoko, army chief Budiman and air force chief Ida Bagus Putu Dunia were not cancelled, but they decided not to attend.

"If my men cannot go, and the commander of the TNI goes, it's not good. So no TNI officer will attend the Singapore Airshow," Gen Moeldoko told reporters at Parliament, where he met the foreign affairs and defence committee.

However, the air force's Jupiter Aerobatic Team will go ahead with its performance.

"With the Jupiters, we want to show the world the skill and ability of our pilots, and they did not cancel that," Gen Moeldoko said. "And our defence industries still have a stand," he added.

The TNI chief said Indonesia's military ties with Singapore were wide-ranging, including in education and training.

He added that at the moment, there were no significant changes to military cooperation between the two countries.

Asked about the Indonesian government's reaction to the cancellations, presidential spokesman for international relations Teuku Faizasyah cautioned against overreacting, "especially as the two countries have sound bilateral relations and in the context of ASEAN".

"The decision to name the ship after Indonesian heroes is final and Indonesia considers the two countries have long resolved the matter following then-prime minister Lee Kuan Yew's (1973) visit to the heroes' cemetery and sprinkling flowers on the graves of Osman and Harun," he said.

zakirh@sph.com.sg

 


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