Rice to visit Indonesia, Australia

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
will visit Indonesia and Australia, strong U.S. allies in
fighting terrorism, from January 7-12, the State Department
said on Tuesday.

Rice will first go to Indonesia, the world’s most populous
Muslim nation, for talks with President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono and other ministers, said spokesman Sean McCormack.

Both sides will discuss a range of issues, including U.S.
support for “Indonesia’s democratic development,” cooperation
in tackling the threat of avian flu and progress in recovery
efforts after the devastating tsunami in December 2004.

They will also likely look at military relations between
Indonesia and the United States, which have become closer as a
reward for Jakarta’s cooperation in the war on terrorism and
against al Qaeda-linked militants.

In November, Washington announced it was restoring military
ties, despite objections from human rights groups which said
monitoring of armed forces would need to be tightened.

U.S. military ties were cut back after Indonesian troops
shot at demonstrators in East Timor in 1991, killing dozens,
when the tiny territory was ruled by Jakarta.

They were then severed after pro-Jakarta militias backed by
elements in the military sacked East Timor in 1999 when the
territory voted for independence.

In Australia, Rice will meet foreign ministers from Japan
and Australia as part of a new “strategic dialogue” between the
three countries, McCormack said.

Rice will also take part in a meeting between the United
States and five Asia-Pacific countries that announced a pact
last July to cut greenhouse gases that falls outside the Kyoto
Protocol on climate change.

Critics say the pact, the Asia-Pacific Partnership for
Clean Development and Climate, is ineffectual and merely serves
the needs of industrialized nations.

The pact, which involves the United States, Australia,
China, Japan, India and South Korea, looks at how to develop
technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions rather than
having specific targets.