Showing posts with label INDONESIA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label INDONESIA. Show all posts

Monday, October 20, 2014

SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS WITH AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ABBOT

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Remarks With Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott Before Their Meeting
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Jakarta, Indonesia
October 20, 2014

PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT: Well, John, look, it's terrific to have yourself here to talk and to share (inaudible) very important issues, from the situation in the Middle East to the situation (inaudible) to all the other areas where the United States and Australia have a very, very close relationship. I appreciate the tremendous leadership the United States shows with the world. I'm grateful for (inaudible) today, because I think it's (inaudible) and that you can be here to help honor the incoming Indonesian President. Australia has had a long, strong relationship with Indonesia. Prime Minister Howard attended the inauguration of President (inaudible) back in 2004. And I hope the tradition that's now been established of Australian prime ministers attending the inaugurations of Indonesian presidents, and perhaps a similar tradition (inaudible) established (inaudible) secretaries of state.

But it's good to be with you, and I'm looking forward to (inaudible).

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, thank you, Prime Minister. It's a privilege to (inaudible), and I appreciate enormously your taking a moment to share (inaudible), and I bring you President Obama's strong greetings and great gratitude of him and all of (inaudible) Australians major stepping up with respect to the coalition. As we said when Secretary Hagel and I were in Sydney, we couldn't have a stronger partner, and we're very, very grateful for Australia's consistent willingness to step up and stand for values, as well as (inaudible) that are important to us.

We couldn't agree more about the inauguration today, the meaning of this, not just in Indonesia, but in the region. It's very, very important, obviously: you're here and, while the President couldn't come, he was very anxious to make sure we were represented at a high level here.

I do want to say that your efforts with respect to foreign fighters, which you regrettably have to experience even at a lower level, brings home to everybody how important it is for this to be a global coalition, and for all of us to understand the stakes. We were well served in the last couple of days as the Iraqis themselves chose a minister of interior and a minister of defense. That's particularly helpful for the planning and implementing of our efforts.

So, I look forward to talk with to you about that, about Iran (inaudible), Afghanistan, the DPRK, the South China Sea. There are a lot of issues for us to chat about. So again, it's good to be with you, and thank you so much for (inaudible).

Saturday, October 18, 2014

EXPORT-IMPORT BANK AGREES T FINANCE EXPORT OF LOCOMOTIVES TO INDONESIA

FROM:  U.S. EXPORT-IMPORT BANK 
Ex-Im Bank Signs Credit Agreement to Finance Export of American-made Locomotives to Indonesia
Deal Supports 700 U.S. Jobs 

Washington, D.C. – Today Export-Import Bank of the U.S. (Ex-Im Bank) Chairman and President Fred P. Hochberg, GE Transportation President and CEO Russell Stokes, and Indonesia’s PT Kereta Api (PTKAI) of Jakarta President and CEO Ignasius Jonan signed a credit agreement totaling $94.3 million to finance the export of 50 General Electric Company locomotives to Indonesia.

Ex-Im Bank’s credit will support approximately 700 U.S. jobs up and down the supply chain, primarily in Erie, Pa. These estimates are derived from Department of Commerce and Department of Labor data and methodology.

“This is a perfect example of the sort of win-win situation that happens when countries buy American,” said Hochberg. “Ex-Im is proud to facilitate transactions like this one, which will support 700 quality jobs here in America even as it empowers Indonesia to build an enduring, reliable transportation infrastructure on the foundation of quality U.S. products.”

PTKAI is the national railway of Indonesia and operates a fleet of more than 300 locomotives that provide both freight and passenger services on the islands of Java and Sumatra. The company plans to upgrade and modernize the nation’s rail infrastructure to better serve Indonesia’s growing economy.

“Ex-Im Bank's financing of this transaction demonstrates the importance of public and private sector leadership,” said Stokes. “The Bank's financial support is a critical part of GE's ability to win foreign sales and deliver for our global customers like PTKAI. With $94.3 million in financing to PTKAI now secured, GE will build 50 locomotives in Pennsylvania and deliver them next year to Indonesia, sustaining good jobs in the U.S. and abroad.”

Industrial Sales and Manufacturing Inc. (ISM), a small business headquartered in Erie, will supply numerous machined, fabricated and assembled components for the GE locomotives. ISM fabricates, assembles, tests, and finishes products found around the world in applications ranging from transportation, mining, agriculture, and recreation to medical devices and renewable energy.

“As a contract manufacturer supplying original equipment manufacturers, Ex-Im Bank's support of global customers of companies like GE is vital to our own company, our community, and the stability and growth of the broader economy in the United States,” said Jim Rutkowski, Jr. of Industrial Sales & Manufacturing, Inc. of ISM.   “Industrial Sales & Manufacturing, Inc. sees Ex-Im Bank's financial support for international sales as a vital component in our continued success in getting long-term American-made assets in place around the world."

ABOUT EX-IM BANK:

Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that supports and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees and export credit insurance, to promote the sale of U.S. goods and services abroad.  Ninety percent of its transactions directly serve American small businesses.

In fiscal year 2013, Ex-Im Bank generated more than $1 billion for U.S. taxpayers while approving more than $27 billion in total authorizations.  These authorizations supported an estimated $37.4 billion in U.S. export sales, as well as approximately 205,000 American jobs in communities across the country.

Saturday, September 6, 2014

SECRETARY KERRY'S STATEMENT ON ANNIVERSARY OF MURDER OF MUNIR SAID THALIB

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Tenth Anniversary of the Murder of Human Rights Activist Munir Said Thalib
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
September 6, 2014

To the Indonesians who loved him, he was simply known as Munir. He spent his life working to make his country more democratic, more free, and more humane. Ten years ago today someone assassinated him because they feared he just might succeed.

Still today, justice has not been served. Full accountability for all those allegedly involved remains elusive. In 2004, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recognized that the credible resolution of Munir’s murder case would be a key test of Indonesian democracy. That is still true today. We support all efforts to bring those who ordered Munir assassinated to account.

Munir was a voice of conscience and clarity. He inspired a generation of activists, scholars, and public servants who today are transforming Indonesia. So many today, including his widow Suciwati, serve his memory by carrying on his mission.

Today we join with the Indonesian people to commemorate the legacy of Munir Said Thalib, and we call for the protection of all who work for peace, democracy, and human rights around the world.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

SECRETARY KERRY'S PRESS STATEMENT REGARDING PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN INDONESIA

Indonesia's Presidential Election

Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
July 22, 2014


I warmly congratulate Indonesia’s president-elect Joko Widodo.
The people of Indonesia united once again to show their commitment to democracy through free and fair elections.

As the world’s second and third largest democracies, the United States and Indonesia set an example for the world. We share many common values, including respect for human rights and the rule of law. Our two nations have worked hard to build the U.S.-Indonesia Comprehensive Partnership, which has strengthened our bilateral relationship so we can jointly address common regional and global challenges.

The United States looks forward to working with President-elect Widodo as we deepen our partnership, promote our shared objectives globally, and expand people-to-people ties between our nations.

Friday, March 28, 2014

STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS REMARKS ON MARITIME SECURITY, STABILITY

FROM:  THE STATE DEPARTMENT, 

Building Maritime Collaboration for Security and Stability

Remarks
Samuel Perez
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
Jakarta International Defence Dialogue (JIDD)
Jakarta, Indonesia
March 19, 2014


(As Prepared)
Modernization, Partnerships and Maritime Domain Awareness
Thank you for inviting me to participate in the Jakarta Defense Dialog. I assure you I am not sailing under false colors, I am indeed a Naval Officer but I am currently on assignment to the State Department and the uniform of the day at our State Department is a Business Suit. My assignment to the State Department underscores our military’s commitment to develop increased partnerships across two departments that have very different roles but share the same goal of better partnerships. I’ll touch more on that later but for now, I relish the opportunity to discuss Maritime topics so thank you once again for providing me with this opportunity to participate.

I am going to start my remarks by first addressing Modernization. If we take a look at the newest naval systems you might be impressed by cruise missiles with terminal speeds far in excess of the speed of sound. You will also see a proliferation of unmanned vehicles, stealthy aircraft and ships that are more connected in a command and control sense than we have ever seen. Gone are the days when a Sailor determined a ship’s might by the tonnage she displaced. Instead, we look at these ships and first ask, how far can the ship see, how well connected is the ship with all the other sensors available to the commander?

Now, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that, with the new systems I am going to describe to you, the United States Navy has taken a quantitative and qualitative leap forward. And Asia will be a great beneficiary of this new equipment. As we rebalance toward Asia, we will increase the percentage of our surface ships in the Pacific theater from about 50 to over 60. But it’s not just a quantitative shift, it’s also a qualitative one. The United States is also rebalancing its most technologically advanced platforms to the Pacific. For example, all the ships of the Zumwalt Guided Missile Destroyer Class will come to the Pacific. The first P8s—an incredible improvement in Maritime Patrol Aircraft capabilities—will come to the Pacific first. Our Navy’s newest surface combatant, the Littoral Combat Ship has already completed one deployment to the South China Sea and we will see another rotational deployment this summer. When we do field the Joint Strike Fighter, it will go first to the Pacific theater—I won’t dwell too much on the F35—it’s bad form for a surface officer to give too much credit to any airplane, no matter how amazing, and I think I’ve exhausted my effusive aviation quota on the P8!

Yes, these systems will make a difference but I want to take this opportunity to look at another aspect of modernization: Partnerships in the maritime domain. True, there is nothing new in partnerships, what I’m talking about is Partnership 5.0—or whatever the latest I-Phone iteration is.

The challenges in the maritime domain remain complex and complicated. Our Chief of Naval Operations has spoken at length about partnerships and their ability to contribute to the global challenge of maintaining freedom of navigation and overflight. These partnerships will enable all navies to take advantage of each other’s strengths and build a maritime community that enables all of us to sail the seas without intimidation or interference. Working together in partnerships, whether bilaterally or multilaterally, allows us to also respond more quickly to humanitarian and disaster assistance when needed. The U.S. Navy was able to respond to Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines quickly, which saved lives and brought needed assistance on a large scale, and opened the way for other countries to donate critical assistance to the affected area. Again, I would like to take an extra second so we can remind ourselves that navies, aside from being able to destroy or defend, can also heal.

Of equal importance, partnerships provide us with a tool that in the end will prove to be more valuable than any Mach ++ cruise missile or the stealthiest aircraft: this tool is Maritime Domain Awareness. Yes, we have all been talking about MDA but why is it worth the effort to establish Partnerships to attain?

None of us can surveil our territorial seas and Exclusive Economic Zones to the extent where we know precisely what everyone is doing at all times. Is someone overfishing our valuable resources? Are criminal elements using our waters to conduct illicit traffic or other activity (smuggling drugs or people, piracy or other illegal actions)? Maritime Domain Awareness provides us with the first element we need to establish control of our own territorial seas and ensure we maintain control of the valuable resources in our EEZs.
I’d like to take you back to the iPhone phone example I shared earlier. There was nothing particularly innovative about making a mobile phone smaller or putting a screen into the phone. But adding the ability to take pictures and mark them with GPS coordinates, for example, expands its usefulness into a tool that helps someone find something. You can use your phone as a radio; you can use it as a search engine, or to catch up on the news. Today the power of the mobile phone is that it is so much more than a means to talk to someone. There are apps that turn your mobile into a very powerful tool, useful for so much more than talking to just one person.

By the same token we need to take our partnerships to the next level and connect our resources so that we can truly take our maritime partnerships into the next level. Again, let us look at the telephone. In the earliest days of the telephone, we had to call through an operator. Then we could use rotary dials and digit dials. It was a huge breakthrough to get cordless phones, and the next step was mobile phones. And remember those first mobile phones? They were the size of your forearms, with bulky antennae. Now, we can fit them in the palm of our hand. And with these phones, we are better connected to each other. These partnerships, this maritime APP if you will, will enable us to cultivate new and understanding and ensure that our U.S. presence, particularly as we send out more ships, continues to be reassuring to the region. It will enable us to use our individual strengths to build capability, capacity and competence across the Maritime Domain. In the end it will enable us to legitimately use the maritime space for legitimate purposes, better enable us to prevent those who would use the Maritime Domain to intimidate weaker nations and prevent the theft of valuable resources or unlawful development within our EEZs.

The United States is committed to the rebalance toward Asia. We have demonstrated that our focus goes beyond just words: we are dedicating diplomatic, public diplomacy, military, and foreign assistance resources to the region in a way that demonstrates the truly comprehensive nature of our engagement. As part of the rebalance, the United States is committed to creating new partnerships and strengthening existing relationships to provide us all with better Maritime Domain Awareness. We are committed to increasing the capabilities we need to prevent the illicit use of commons and the theft of our resources. Modernization, both in a technological form and in the form of new partnerships will enable better Maritime Domain Awareness.
Maritime Domain Awareness is important. We build it through partnerships. With it, countries protect prosperity and grow relationships. Part of that is through modernizing navies, not just with technology, but new thinking. Our “Rebalance Toward Asia” is part of our effort to build our diplomatic, economic, democratic, multilateral and security relationships with our partners in East Asia and the Pacific. We have always been a Pacific nation and we will continue to be one.

Ultimately, what we all want is freedom of navigation, freedom for our ships to operate pursuant to the rules of reflected in international law. Lawful commerce should flow without impediment or coercion.

Monday, February 17, 2014

REMARKS BY SECRETARY KERRY, INDONESIAN FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA

Remarks With Indonesian Foreign Minister Raden Mohammad Marty Muliana Natalegawa


Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Jakarta, Indonesia
February 17, 2014


FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: I will speak in Bahasa Indonesia first, and then I will also speak a little bit in English as well.

(In Bahasa Indonesia) (Via translation) This morning, I am very happy to have a visit from our friend, his Excellency U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. John Kerry. Secretary Kerry and I have met many times on the sidelines of international meetings. If I am not mistaken, the last time we met was at the meeting on Syria, in Montreux, Switzerland. This time, we are really very happy that you are visiting Jakarta on the occasion of the 4th Joint Ministerial Commission between Indonesia and the United States.

Actually, the talks started last night, in an informal meeting during dinner. We discussed many issues, especially regional and global issues. Without going into great detail about what we discussed yesterday, we discussed, for example, the issues related to the situation in the Asia Pacific, including South East Asia, and East Asia in general. We also discussed the issue of the South China Sea, and also Indonesia’s initiative on the prevention on violence and our preference for resolving issues through diplomacy. In addition, yesterday, we also discussed global issues.

But today, in the meeting, we focused on the bilateral relationship between two countries. We heard in detail reports from various working groups that have been set up to enhance relations between Indonesia and the United States. We need to underline that Indonesia and the United States are the second and third biggest democratic country in the word, have become equal partners, and become partners that cooperate closely to promote relations between the two countries and to advance common interests at the regional and global level.

For this reason, we heard reports from the working group on democracy and civil society, working group on trade and investment, working group on education, on climate change and environment, working group on security, and working group on energy.

After giving guidance to these working groups, we are determined to increase our bilateral relationship to an even higher level.

(In English) Secretary Kerry, it is my tremendous pleasure and honor even to welcome you to Jakarta, on the occasion of this fourth joint ministerial commission. I have mentioned with our colleagues from the media that we have had occasions in the past to meet at the sidelines of other conferences. I recall probably the last time that we would have been in one forum would have been in Montreux, when we met for the Syrian international conference.

But it is, therefore, of singular importance that we are welcoming you today here in Jakarta on the occasion of the Joint Ministerial Commission, because apart – in this forum, apart from discussing issues of common interest of regional and global nature, we can be really focused on promoting the comprehensive partnership that our two countries are – have been developing since 2010.

I must say that the discussion throughout this morning has been especially productive and especially constructive as well. We have been hearing from our colleagues, the chairs of the six working groups promoting bilateral relations between our two countries: democracy and civil society, trade and investment, education, climate and environment, security, energy. We have been able to scorecard or snapshot the current state of Indonesia-U.S. relations. And I must say, the trajectory has been very positive, but we now have the task of consolidating and taking it to a higher level.

Indonesia and United States are partners, partners in promoting democratic values, partners in promoting peace and security in our region, and partners in promoting the better welfare and economic prosperity of peoples in our region. And I’m, therefore, especially pleased that throughout this morning and yesterday evening we were able to cooperate and exchange views on these such issues of common interest.

With that, I’d like to give you the floor now, John, to share your thoughts on our conversation and, if time allows, to also open the floor for some questions from our media colleagues. Please, John.

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, thank you very much, Marty, my friend. We have really met many times on the side of different conferences, and we’ve gotten to know each other well. And I think we work effectively together, and I appreciate the – both the friendship and the generosity of his efforts with respect to the partnership between the United States and Indonesia.

Let me start today, if I can, by expressing my condolences on behalf of all Americans and President Obama to the victims of the Mount Sinabung volcano in the Mount Kelud volcanoes. We understand that the families of the 21 people who passed away are obviously suffering a great loss, and the tens of thousands of people who have been uprooted from their homes is a humanitarian challenge. And we stand ready to help in any way that Indonesia might need or want. And we certainly express our condolences to the families for those lost and to all of Indonesia.

Very special for me to be able to be back in Jakarta. I came here a number of times as a senator, and my sister lived here in Jakarta and taught at the International School for quite a few years. So I have, for many years, heard her stories of her years here and her enjoyment of both the people and the country, and so it’s nice for me to be able to be back here.
This is an amazingly dynamic city. Yesterday, I had the privilege of going to the Istiqlal mosque. And it’s my pleasure to not only say good morning to everybody here, but as-salam alaykum. It’s my honor to be a guest at this remarkable house of worship, the third largest mosque in the world, the largest in the region, in Asia, and really an incredible monument to faith and to the power of worship and the ability of people to come together and worship.

And what is really important, I thought, was to see just a short distance away the spires of the cathedral, which really is a symbol together of the tolerance that exists here in Indonesia, a very, very critical asset and one that we admire Indonesians for embracing. Much of the world could learn a great deal from your tradition of religious tolerance and pluralism, which is so clearly embedded in the DNA of Indonesian people.

This morning, as the Foreign Minister mentioned, we were both very pleased to join in the fourth convening of the meeting of the U.S-Indonesia Comprehensive Partnership Joint Commission. Comprehensive partnership defines the work that we are doing. And I mentioned at the end of our meeting how impressed I was with the ideas that were exchanged, because we have these working groups that had been sitting down with each other when we’re not here, to listen to them, as we were today, in order to press the agenda between Indonesia and the United States.

In the few short years since our governments established this comprehensive partnership, we have together been far better equipped to be able to address shared challenges and to identify shared opportunities. And as Marty mentioned, we targeted today trade and investment, climate change and energy, issues of education, and other challenges in our relationship that we believe are opportunities. And we intend to try to make the most of those opportunities. And we talked about ways we could even improve this joint commission partnership, and we’re going to work on them. The fact is that, as a result of these meetings, our bilateral relationship is growing in a wide range of areas, and it’s growing faster, I can assure you, than it would be if we did not have this kind of partnership effort.

You saw just a few minutes ago we signed two new memorandum of understanding. Those came out of this commission – one to build on the work that we do to protect against wildlife trafficking, which is a threat to the ecosystem, a threat to species, a threat to our conscience, and really summons an obligation by all of us to try to do better, and also the responsibility to preserve the remarkably rich biodiversity that exists, both marine diversity and land-based biodiversity that exists in Indonesia, richest in the world, and it’s important to preserve it.
We also signed a memorandum to increase our joint development assistance to support human rights, regional integration, democracy, peace, and stability in third countries. And there are many countries that could benefit from the joint effort of the United States and Indonesia, and we intend to continue to do that.

I respect Mr. Natalegawa’s commitment as a leader to ASEAN and the work that has been done, which is critical to advancing our efforts to promote peace and prosperity in the region. I was in Beijing just two days ago, where I discussed the United States growing concerns over a pattern of behavior in which maritime claims are being asserted in the East China and South China Sea, from restrictions on access to the Scarborough Shoals, the Scarborough Reef, to China’s establishment of an ADIZ in the East China Sea, to the issuance of revised regulations restricting fishing in disputed areas of the South China Sea.

We believe very strongly that international law applies to all countries, big countries, small countries. And we live, even though we are not – even though the United States has not ratified the Law of the Sea, we live by the Law of the Sea. We are pledged to stick with the rules of the Law of the Sea. And we think it’s important for all countries to do that. It is imperative for all claimants to any location in these seas to base their maritime claims on the definitions of international law and to be able to resolve them peacefully within that framework.

The United States is very grateful for the leadership and the role that Indonesia has played in advancing China-ASEAN negotiations on a code of conduct in the South China Sea. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the region’s future stability will depend, in part, on the success and the timeliness of the effort to produce a code of conduct. The longer the process takes, the longer tensions will simmer, and the greater the chance of a miscalculation by somebody that could trigger a conflict. That is in nobody’s interest. So I commend Foreign Minister Natalegawa for his focus on this issue. And I urge all of the parties to follow his lead and accelerate the negotiations.

Indonesia – it should be clear from today’s meeting and from the things that we have talked about and the things that we are accomplishing – is increasingly becoming a major U.S. partner, not just on regional challenges, but on global challenges like climate change and counterterrorism. That includes on Syria, where we are working hard to together to finally bring about a political solution to this horrible war. And I am very grateful to Foreign Minister Natalegawa for coming to Montreux to join us as one of 40 nations to help to make it clear how important it is to adhere to the standards of the Geneva I communique.
Yesterday, here in Jakarta, at the @america forum, I had the privilege of being able to talk about the challenge of climate change. You really only have to look at the extensive science to understand that climate change is one of the one, two, or three biggest challenges facing this planet. That’s why I raise the issue in nearly every single country that I visit as Secretary of State.

If we are going to prevent the worst consequences of climate change then, especially in places like Indonesia, which are on the frontlines of this threat, then we need everybody engaged. No one nation can solve this problem by itself. We need the United States, Indonesia, and every other country on earth doing everything that they can do to make the right choices in order to meet this challenge head-on. This is the most quintessentially global challenge that we have ever faced. It really demands a global solution. There’s no way to solve it. So we look forward to working with our partner, Indonesia, on that, as well as others.

As the world’s second and third largest democracies, we stand here today firmly with the belief, which both our presidents share, that our nations will benefit greatly from stronger ties and deeper levels of cooperation. I am not only talking about strengthening the ties between governments, we’re also talking about strengthening the ties between our peoples.
In the past few years alone, we have made terrific progress in the area of people-to-people relationships. I’m proud to say that the number of Americans studying in Indonesia has increased nearly 70 percent since 2010. And the number of Indonesians studying in the United States has grown substantially as well. And with the joint commission’s focusing on strengthening university partnerships and increasing the quality of education, we are absolutely confident the number of students going in both directions is going to increase. I look forward to seeing that.

So thank you, Indonesia, for your friendship. Thank you for the partnership. We respect the serious way in which we work out differences, and we appreciate enormously the fact that we have found common ground on such important issues. And through this joint commission, we are building our relationship even more so. Thank you very much, Marty.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: Thanks very much.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you.

MODERATOR: We will now begin the (inaudible). I will give the first opportunity to our guest from the U.S. media.

QUESTION: Thank you very much. Minister Natalegawa, what is your response to the report that the NSA, with the help of the Australians, spied on an American law firm that represented your government in trade talks with the United States? And did you raise this issue in your talks with Secretary Kerry?

And Secretary Kerry, if the issued was raised, could I ask you what your response was? And more broadly, moving onto the TPP negotiations, how much of a handicap is it that even your own Democrats are balking at giving President Obama trade promotion authority? How can you expect Asian countries to start providing access to their markets if there’s a perceived lack of support for this in Congress? Thank you.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: Thank you very much for that question. The entire portfolio of extraterritorial surveillance has been obtaining a great deal of attention, not only here in Jakarta, but, as I understand it, as well in Washington and many capitals in Europe as well. I am aware that the U.S. administration recently – President Obama – had gone through, undertaken a review of the type of activities and the type of work that the various U.S. intelligence agencies are conducting, its impact, its relevance within United States, and as well in its international relations.

Our understanding is that the kind of review, the kind of amendments and approach that had been signaled by United States sides will be also forthcoming, will also be relevant in its conduct of its relations with Indonesia, given the nature of our relationship between the two countries. That is as far as the broad subject of extraterritorial surveillance.
As I said before, this is a subject that is obtaining a great deal of attention in many a capital. And United States is one of those that had actually taken a very comprehensive and thought-through review. And what I am now anticipating and what I am now understanding is that the kind of refinement and approach and refinement in outlook and practice would be a relevant to a country like Indonesia as a partner of the United States.

On the specific issue – I’m sorry if I have to speak of this at this forum, because this doesn’t impact on United States directly. But on the alleged information about the sharing of information by one intelligence agency, namely the Australian, signals directed on matters to do with the then-pending issue of – between United States and Indonesia to do with cloves and to do with shrimps. I have come across a statement by our good partner Australia on this issue and the reference that Australia collect intelligence to save Australian lives, to save the lives of other people, to promote Australian values, that those are well understood as our general outlook.
But I must say, that is why I chose not to respond immediately yesterday, this weekend. I find it a bit mind-boggling, a little bit difficult, how I can connect or reconcile discussions about shrimps and how it impact on Australia security. This is a very technical, bilateral Indonesia-U.S. issue, which is thankfully now behind us. But to suggest as if the future of shrimps export by Indonesia to United States has an impact on Australian security is a little bit too much and begs some kind of a serious question about what it is all about.

Again, my apologies for taking – using this opportunity, but in my view, in our view, neighbors, like Indonesia and Australia are, we should be looking out for each other, not turning against one another. We should be listening to one another and not to listen-in. And I think there is a very important and fine distinction between to listen to one another and to listen-in. And I think the recent revelations indicate that we are where we are just now.
But on the United States, I’m quite comfortable to hear the U.S. views on this, but my understanding is as I had just now described. Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, Marty, thank you very, very much. Let me deal with the question that Marty was just answering first, and then I’ll come to the other on the TPP. I really appreciate and respect what Marty has just said, and I completely understand, as we do in the United States, how there are concerns in various parts of the world regarding this issue, which is a challenge for all of us.

We take this issue very seriously, which is why President Obama laid out a series of concrete and substantial reforms that we believe should give greater confidence to people everywhere about privacy and civil liberties and that they are being protected and, at the same time, preserving very important tools with respect to keeping us safe in an age of major threats and of terrorism and that addresses significant questions.

I’d just make to very clear to everybody: As the President said in his speech on this subject, the United States does not collect intelligence to afford a competitive advantage to U.S. companies or U.S. commercial sectors. And with the reforms that we put in place, we believe we have a transparency and an accountability that should address everybody’s concerns.
With respect to TPP, I spent 29 years in the United States Senate. And I have voted on many trade agreements, including way back in the beginning, NAFTA, all the way through to our most recent agreements with Colombia and Korea and so forth. There is always opposition. We’ve never known there not to be opposition. That’s part of political life.

But we are living in a very different world today. Because of globalization, no country can think about growing and providing greater prosperity and opportunity to its people and a rising income without the ability to be able to trade in goods and services on a global basis. That’s the world we live in. No political leader can put that genie back in the bottle. You can’t do it. So what you need to do is, through good government and good leadership, tame the worst outcomes that might stare at you if you don’t address them.

In the very beginning, when the first trade agreements were created, there weren’t appropriate applications of law on labor standards or on environment standards or on other kinds of things. But the fact is that, over a period of time, we have developed those things. And modern trade agreements encompass a balance so that we address some of the things that we’ve learned through experience can occur in economies that people have opposed.

So I will urge my colleagues – my former colleagues in the United States Senate and the Congress – to look very carefully and to measure this and not to jump ahead of time with a decision that so seriously affects our economic future and the future of how countries behave in trade relationships around the world. It is very important for us to be able to be part of the fastest growing region in the world and to make sure that everybody is engaged in a race to the top, not a race to bottom.

So I will continue to speak, as President Obama will and the rest of the Administration, to the United States Congress and to the world about importance of these agreements. We will continue to negotiate and continue to work for the TPP, because we believe that is a critical component of prosperity and growth for the regions, as well as the way in which we will build greater stability on a global basis. So we look forward to doing what we’ve always done, which is testifying, speaking one-on-one, talking to people, advocating, demonstrating how this benefits the United States and Asia at the same time. And in the end, I believe people will come to the appropriate judgment.

MODERATOR: Thank you. Next question is from (inaudible).

QUESTION: Good morning, Excellencies. My name’s Grace Manjutak. My first question: How would you comment on the upcoming Indonesian elections and the struggle for democracy, as some of the presidential candidates were accused of human rights violations? What do you expect from the next leader of Indonesia?

And secondly, why is the U.S. actively campaigning for solution of climate change while you refuse to comply with international protocol on climate change, the Kyoto Protocol, for example? The U.S. also refuses to ratify a number of international protocol, including the Rome Statute and CTBT. Can you please comment on this? Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: Was the election question to me, too? Oh, okay. (Laughter.)

MINISTER NATALEGAWA: It’s especially to you. (Laughter.)

SECRETARY KERRY: How lucky can I be? (Laughter.) That’s what I want to do, is be the Secretary of State who comes and comments on someone else’s election before it takes place. (Laughter.)

Well, look, let me just say to you very, very clearly the United States, as I said earlier in my comments, has huge respect for the fact that Indonesia is a leading democracy and a very important partner to the United States. But it’s up to the Indonesian people to choose their own leaders. The United States will not get involved. We will not, quietly or otherwise, be picking candidates. That would be entirely inappropriate. It’s up to the people of Indonesia to make their choices. And we’re not going to be hypocritical and say we value democracy and people’s independence and respect their sovereignty and then turn around and become involved.
We are confident that whatever outcome comes out of this election we will maintain a very strong relationship with Indonesia and it will reflect our shared goals: our commitment to democracy, our respect for human rights, our respect for pluralism, for tolerance with respect to religious practice and individual practice. And we are confident that Indonesia will continue to make progress, the way it has over the course of the last 10 years.

On the subject of climate change and the international conventions, actually the United States of America is taking a lead today. President Obama has decided that he will do, by executive order, what Congress has been unwilling to do. So we have passed new standards for our automobiles, higher standards for reducing emissions. We have passed new standards requiring lower emissions for all of our trucks. We have lowered emissions in the United States significantly. We have put out, by executive order, requirements for buildings and government buildings and government purchase of fleets of automobiles.

We have engaged, through – our Environmental Protection Agency has put on some of the toughest standards ever in our history with respect to any new coal-fired power plant. So it is very difficult now in America to build a coal-fire power plant without meeting very, very rigorous standards. We have much tougher standards than other countries in the rest of the world with respect to that, except perhaps for Europe, where they have very strong standards also.
We are increasingly moving on a climate action agenda, which President Obama has put into place and ordered. We meet regularly with the cabinet now in order to designate where each cabinet secretary – where each area could provide greater contribution to emissions reductions. That includes, for instance, agriculture and our agriculture practices.
And I just came from China, where we agreed to work with the Chinese. And they are beginning to take enormous steps, because they’re concerned about air quality, air pollution, as well as what’s happening to the globe in terms of climate change. And we have agreed to work together to set very strong standards as we go into 2015 and to try to work to compare how we can do this in a way that is least impactful on our economies and most beneficial to the environment.

So I’m proud of what the United States is doing today, and I believe we will help to move the process towards a successful 2015 negotiation in Paris.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: Let me just say a little bit on the climate change.
Secretary Kerry just now had inform us about the national-level efforts the United States has been taking to address the challenge of climate change. Of course, likewise, at the national level in Indonesia, we have, as you are I’m sure very much well informed, have also been taking a number of concrete, important national-level steps to address the threat of climate change, whether to achieve our target of 26 percent or 41 percent emission cut by 2020, our efforts through the national action plan on the efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emission through dealing with the issue of forest degradation, the issue of energy mix and transportation and industry, and so on and so forth.

So both of us, I’m sure has a narrative to share in terms of our national-level efforts. What is important in this forum is to synergize those efforts so the national becomes, at the same time, bilateral. We can showcase some bilateral U.S.-Indonesia cooperation on climate change to the rest of the world, that this is – it is actually possible to synergize national and bilateral and to become drivers in global discussions on climate change.

So what we are dong very much is part of creating that synergy between national-level efforts, bilateral, regional, and global, because we have really – if there is one issue that requires cooperative outlook, this would be it.

And I was struck by the points made by Secretary Kerry yesterday in his remarks at the public forum, reminding all of us in the sense of how extensive and how expansive is the impact of climate change. And you can count on Indonesia as being a continued strong partner in this very worthwhile endeavor.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much.

MODERATOR: The next question comes from (inaudible).

QUESTION: First question for Secretary Kerry. The Geneva II talks have yielded no progress and they’re stalling. And in your statement yesterday, you said the U.S. remains committed to a political solution. So what leverage can you bring to stop the Assad regime from obstructing the talks and that there is a political solution when there is no progress?

Also your statement, you said that regime supporters aren’t doing enough to pressure the regime. Are you talking specifically about Russia, and what are they not doing enough of?
And for Minister Natalegawa, are Indonesians traveling to Syria to join foreign fighters and help the extremist groups there establish their goal of establishing an Islamic state there? And if so, how many have done so? Where are they being recruited? And what is your government doing about this?

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, thank you very much. Syria is a tragedy to the world, and all of us have a stake in trying to change the equation on the ground with respect to the people of Syria.
The talks themselves are taking a recess for a moment, but all of us need to remember that there is no recess for the people of Syria, who are suffering. And the international community needs to use this recess in the Geneva talks to determine how to use this time most effectively in order to bring about a political solution. We still believe there is no military solution with respect to Syria; there has to be a political resolution.

But right now, Bashar al-Assad has not engaged in the discussions along the promised and required standard that both Russia spoke up for and the regime spoke up for, that they would come to Geneva and accept the Geneva I communique as the basis of negotiations. They have refused to open up one moment of discussion legitimately about a transition government, and it is very clear that Bashar al-Assad is continuing to try to win this in the battlefield rather than to come to the negotiating table in good faith.

None of us are surprised that the talks are hard. We always knew these talks would be very, very difficult, and we’re still at a difficult moment. But everybody should agree that the Assad regime’s attitude is what has made these talks tougher. The opposition, whom they dismissed completely, has come to these talks with a greater preparation, with a greater preparedness, to be able to talk seriously, and they have presented themselves – I think Marty would agree – far more effectively and with greater sense of purpose than the Assad regime.

I think it was an example to the whole world that, while the Assad regime has obstructed and filibustered, the opposition demonstrated a courageous and mature seriousness of purpose and a willingness to try to discuss all the aspects of the conflict. They put forward a well-thought-out, well-reasoned, viable roadmap for the creation of a transitional governing body and a viable path by which to move the negotiations forward. They did that. The opposition did that. The regime stonewalled. They did nothing, except continue to drop barrel bombs on their own people and continue to destroy their own country.

And I regret to say they are dong so with increased support from Iran, from Hezbollah, and from Russia. Russia needs to be a part of the solution and not be contributing so many more weapons and so much more aid that they’re, in fact, enabling Assad to double down, which is creating an enormous problem.

And as for Assad, who says he wants to talk about terrorism, Assad himself is a magnet for terrorists. He’s the principal magnet of the region for attracting foreign fighters to Syria. Moreover, Assad himself is engaging in state-sanctioned terror against his own people. When you indiscriminately drop bombs on women and children, when you starve people and torture people by the thousands, those are acts of terror.

And so it is important for the world to consider in these next days exactly what steps can now be taken in the face of this intransigence that is creating an even greater human catastrophe by the moment. The numbers of refugees within Syria has gone up about 50 percent, and the numbers of refugees who’ve gone out of Syria has gone up about 33 percent since October, when this process began.

So we are deeply committed and deeply concerned about it. The international community understands that the primary purpose of our diplomacy is to discuss the full implementation of the Geneva communique. The full implementation is what 40 countries came and supported in Montreux, and that calls for a transition government with full executive authority arrived at by mutual consent.

Russia, on several occasions, has stood up publicly with me, or in other places, and said they are committed to that transition government to the Geneva communique and Geneva I. And yet, we have not seen the kind of effort to create the dynamic by which that can be achieved.
So we will continue to look at options. We will continue to stay focused. And we will continue to debate among ourselves what steps are appropriate at this point in time.

FOREIGN MINISTER NATALEGAWA: On Syria, the specific question you had asked about the possibility of Indonesian nationals being somehow engaged or involved on the ground – actually, there’s no way of verifying the data. Our current efforts have been actually in repatriating our nationals out of Syria, because we’ve had – prior to the conflict – quite a sizeable number of our nationals in Syria, so we have been working very hard to have them repatriated, return back to Indonesia.

I have been hearing – we have been hearing information or suggestion that there are some who have gone to Syria to be involved in the conflict. Obviously, it’s not something that we condone. Our message to them is not to involve themselves in such activities and that they must return back.

But beyond that specific question, I mean, all of us, when we were in Geneva – I mean, in Montreux for the meeting, all of us are in recognition that more of the same is not acceptable. More of the same means more civilian causalities, more lives lost, and more humanitarian sufferings. I fear that we may become a little bit numb to all this – of all this humanitarian catastrophe. We must not allow that to happen. We must constantly ensure that the interest of the innocent Syrians are at the forefront and change the dynamics.

I have spoken on many occasions of Indonesia’s strong belief in the power of diplomacy, in the power of peaceful settlement of disputes, even in the face of obviously very difficult situation, as we are facing just now in Syria.

So based on Geneva I, we must redouble our efforts in order to ensure that the diplomatic option, the diplomatic solution, becomes at the forefront. We owe the people of Syria that at least, that we apply ourselves seriously and that we don’t have – no longer have the luxury of allowing things to be prolonged. Because every day that passes means more lives lost and more sufferings for the ordinary people of Syria.

Indonesia’s view is very clear. We have always felt, first and foremost, we must engineer, we must enforce even, some kind of a cease-fire or pause in the conflict to allow for precisely the kind of transitional process, political process to get underway, as well as humanitarian assistance to be extended. Indonesia and United States are strong partners, I am sure, in speaking on behalf of such important principles as ensuring that the choices and the wishes of the Syrian people are actually respected. Thank you very much.

SECRETARY KERRY: Can I just add one other thing, quickly, if I may? On the humanitarian situation, we are trying very hard at the United Nations, through the United Nations Security Council, to achieve a meaningful resolution that might be able to have some impact on this humanitarian crisis. In Homs, people were allowed finally, after a long negotiation – we don’t have time for negotiations for every single place where you’re trying to save lives. So there has to be a broad rule of access for humanitarian assistance.

More than 250,000 people are currently under siege and being starved, some of them for as long as a year or two. They haven’t received humanitarian assistance. The Assad regime blocks it or requires it to come through to Damascus, where it gets separated and never gets to some of the people it’s supposed to get to. Now sometimes, the opposition has gotten in the way, certain opposition, the really bad opposition, and they’ve stood in the way of delivery. So both have to happen, and we’re trying to include both. We’re not trying to point a finger at one party alone.

But the fact is that you can’t allow people to be taken out as a matter of humanitarian effort – and then they’re separated. The young men are separated and the government takes them, and some of them have disappeared, some have been tortured. That’s not humanitarian. That is not part of providing humanitarian assistance to people. But that’s the way the Assad regime has treated it.

So this is an urgent matter for the international community. And President Obama and I call on all members of the United Nations Security Council to join together and pass a meaningful, impactful resolution with respect to this humanitarian crisis.

MODERATOR: Thank you.

Sunday, February 16, 2014

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY AT ISTIQLAL MOSQUE IN JAKARTA, INDONESIA

Remarks At the Istiqlal Mosque


Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Istiqlal Mosque
Jakarta, Indonesia
February 16, 2014




SECRETARY KERRY: The Istiqlal mosque is a famous mosque – very, very beautiful. It’s an extraordinary place – the third-largest mosque in the world, the largest mosque in Asia, and a very remarkable place of worship, and I’m very privileged to be here. And I’m grateful to the Grand Imam for allowing me to come.
As-salam alaikum.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S MEETING WITH MISSION STAFF IN INDONESIA

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Secretary Kerry Meets With Mission Indonesia Staff
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Grand Hyatt Bali
Bali, Indonesia
October 8, 2013

SECRETARY KERRY: Hello.

MS. BAUER: Welcome.

SECRETARY KERRY: Hi, Kristen. How are you? Nice to see you.

MS. BAUER: Hi, I’m well. Well, let me welcome everyone.

SECRETARY KERRY: Like an interview here. “How are you?” “I’m fine.” Right. (Laughter.)

MS. BAUER: As many of you know, I’m from Boston, Massachusetts, so it gives me special pleasure to introduce to you the man who represented my state for 28 years in the U.S. Senate. He’s of course our Secretary of State and has led us through this very successful APEC. Please join me in welcoming Secretary Kerry.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Kristen. Thank you very, very much. (Applause.) I’m too far away here. I don’t want to come – I can’t even see you with these bright lights. Am I screwing up? Is this all right? It’s okay, you can do that? Now I feel closer, and this is like I’m talking to people. How are you?

AUDIENCE: Good.

SECRETARY KERRY: That’s fantastic. Isn’t it great that she’s from Boston, Massachusetts? (Laughter.) Yeah, I know. That’s not loud enough – yes, it’s great! I want to hear. (Cheers.) Anyway, I want you to know – she doesn’t know this, but she had the job that my father had at the Embassy in Oslo, Norway.

MS. BAUER: Oh, no, I didn’t know that.

SECRETARY KERRY: See? She was the political counselor there, political and economic affairs. And years ago, when I was in my teens, my dad was stationed as a Foreign Service Officer in Norway for a while, which we loved, and I’m sure you did too. Wasn’t it great? Yeah, it was fabulous.

Anyway, I am really happy to be here. And this also deserves applause - she just got promoted to Minister-Counselor, so that’s fabulous. (Applause.) Really excellent. And she’s doing a fabulous job as our charge, and shortly, Ambassador Bob Blake will be here as we get Washington doing what Washington is supposed to do, which is send people out to work and pay them, right, when they do it. It’s not a bad idea. By the way, did you all order your turkeys, those of you who – (laughter) – I know this is – you got your order in, didn’t you? I'm sorry, but I know you've been here working really hard. Thank you.

I guess it’s hard coming to Bali. Was it? (Laughter.) Whoa. Who’s laughing about that one? I know what goes into this. It’s really a tremendous amount of work, a conference like this. Thank you for making it really easy. Everything just worked so well. This is really one of the best international meetings I’ve been to, and I heard a lot of the other leaders saying how organized they thought it was and how effective. So we’re really grateful to all of you. Thank you very, very much, Embassy Jakarta, for doing so much for us here.


And thank you for – I know it was really hard when you were chosen to come to Bali for a few days, and you groaned and said, “I don’t want to,” right? No. You’re all happy, and I know it’s great. Did you get any time off? Anybody get to the beach? None at all? (Laughter.) We worked – all right.

PARTICIPANT: (Off-mike.)

SECRETARY KERRY: I beg your pardon.

PARTICIPANT: To breathe for a little bit.

SECRETARY KERRY: To breathe only a little bit. Well, thank you very, very much. I mean that. This is a special place. It’s pretty incredible to come out here. As I said the other day when I gave a speech that I worked very hard in 2004 to replace a president of the United States, but this is not what I had in mind coming here. (Laughter.) And I know President Obama very, very much regrets not being able to be here, but for all the obvious reasons, he’s back home and focused on the debt crisis and on the question of the government shutdown as he ought to be.

And I apologize to all of you. I am sorry for all the disruption, I’m sorry for the questions that it raises and that you have to answer about what’s going on in our government and at home, and I am particularly sorry that many of you are facing difficulties in terms of pay and what is going to happen over these next months and big question marks. So my apologies to you for what is not being decided and what is not happening that should be.

Obviously it was on the minds of many of the leaders that I met with and talked to, but I am convinced and I do believe that when we get beyond this, the presence of the United States in this region will be as strong as ever, that we will continue to do the rebalance to Asia. We are focused on this; we worked at length today on the TPP. We had a very strong meeting with very good results, and I promise all of you that your hard work and your devotion and commitment to this effort will pay off in the long run. So thank you very, very much for what you’re doing.

On another level, it is amazing to be in a country where so many young kids run around wearing a t-shirt with the President of the United States on it. It’s pretty amazing, and to have a president who can speak some local dialect and who has the kind of connection that he has here, you can just feel it in my conversations with the President that there’s a pride, and there’s a real sense of connection to the United States of America. And our relationship with Indonesia today because of the work that all of you do, because of the relationship with the President, because of the work that Indonesia has done with the United States in terms of environment, economy, our relationship, our security interests, military-to-military, all of these things are working really, frankly, better than they ever have. I’d say the relationship with Indonesia is as strong as it’s ever been and growing stronger.

So I thank every single one of you for being here. I think we have about 276 Americans assigned to the Embassy in Jakarta and about 1,400 or so local staff. All the local staff, raise your hands, please, those of you who are local. Thank you profoundly from all of us. (Applause.) We’re very, very grateful to you. Thank you very, very much.

So I want you to continue to be the optimists that brought you to this kind of mission in the first place. You’re all people who believe in making a difference. You believe in helping countries to come together, people to come together, bridge the gaps, create stability, build a future for all of us not just as Americans, but as global citizens, and I thank you very, very much for caring about that and being part of this great adventure. I look forward to saying hello to all of you now personally. Thank you very, very much. Look forward to it. (Applause.)

SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S REMARKS AT APEC CEO SUMMIT

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 
Remarks at the APEC CEO Summit
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Bali International Convention Center
Bali, Indonesia
October 7, 2013

Thank you, Wishnu, very, very much. It’s a great pleasure for me to be here, and an honor to be able to address you. And on behalf of President Obama, I want to thank our hosts in Indonesia for an absolutely, extraordinary generous hospitality, and I particularly – I think you will join me in feeling that they have been remarkable in their leadership in the course of this summit. So I thank them.

Let me echo the regret President Obama expressed personally to President Yudhoyono that he could not be here this week. I know he really was looking forward, genuinely to being here. I want you all to know that in 2004, obviously, I worked very, very hard to replace a president – this is not what I had in mind. (Laughter.)

But I also want to make it very clear to everybody: No one should mistake what is happening in Washington as anything more than a moment of politics. We’ve all seen it before; we’ll probably see it again, but I guarantee you we will move beyond this and we will move beyond it with strength and determination.

One of the things that encourages me enormously is the recent news that the United States of America is now the world’s largest energy – oil and gas – supplier, and we are renewing manufacturing. Our innovation is strong, our debt is coming down, our deficit is coming down, and I am absolutely confident that the innovation and strength that has characterized our economy for some period of time will continue well beyond this moment being considerably forgotten by all of you.

I want to emphasize that there is nothing that will shake the commitment of the United States to the rebalance to Asia that President Obama is leading. And I think it’s fair to say to all of you that we are very, very proud to be a Pacific nation. We are inextricably linked to this region by ties of geography, of history, culture, economics, and frankly the blood and the treasure that we expended to help lay the framework for the architecture on which prosperity is now being built.

The Asia Pacific region, which we are all a part of, is by far the largest, the fastest-growing, and the most dynamic economic region in the world. But in the 21st century, happily, our lives are defined not just by the work of troops or of diplomats, but increasingly by the efforts of entrepreneurs and executives, of the private sector – those of you and the businesses you build, and the workers that you employ, the places that you invest, the partnerships that you forge, and the students who represent the future of this multinational, multicultural, and multigenerational relationship that is being built in the dawn of the 21st century.

This is an exciting time. It’s an extraordinary time of transformation and change. And I know that every one of you come here with a sense of excitement and a sense of the possibilities that come with that. Quite simply, how this region grows, and how we engage the 2.7 billion customers who live here, that will shape the future of the world’s economy.

And the numbers tell a very important part of this story: More than half of global GDP is represented by this region. Half of global trade happens in this region. When you list the United States top 10 trading partners, half are APEC economies. We send more than half of our exports to this region. And over the next five years, nearly half of all the economic growth that will happen outside of the United States will happen in the Asia Pacific region. So if you put it all together, it is obvious why all of us, the private sector and the public sector, have a stake in the choices that we will make in the days ahead. But make no mistake, they are choices, and they will require the private sector and the public sector to work together like never before, in order to make the right choices.

As you know, when President Obama took office, the top priority had been creating new jobs and security for America’s middle class. And he also knows that can’t happen, and it won’t happen – and to the degree it’s happened, it hasn’t happened without your participation. What you sell, what you buy, where you invest – these are all major parts of the equation. And that’s why President Obama has worked hard to grow our exports by more than 50 percent since taking office, and two-way trade between the United States and other APEC economies has grown by nearly the same amount during the same period. Today, both American exports and American trade with APEC stands at record levels.

And when I became Secretary of State, I reminded my colleagues in the Senate during my confirmation hearing that foreign policy today is more than ever economic policy. National security is not just about the threats that we face – and we’re all familiar with those threats – but it’s about what we can do to prevent the seeds of tomorrow’s threats from being planted today. In a world where vast populations of young people are exploding on the scene with aspirations and demands, all interconnected by the social media, at that time anarchy and terror are sometimes offered as alternatives to the fulfillment of those jobs and opportunity, to the fulfillment of good governance.

And so we have a special challenge, all of us together – nobody’s exempt. There’s no business sector over here and government over here. It’s joined together, and it’s critical that we act together and work together. The consequences of failing to do so are staring at all of us – in Syria, Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and other parts of the world where young people – young people – remember what happened in Tunisia was a reflection of the aspirations of a fruit vendor who rebelled against corruption simply because he wanted to be able to live his life and sell his goods. What happened in Tahrir Square was without any religious overtones or connotations. It was again young people texting each other, using smart phones, talking about the possibilities of the future. And so it was in Syria, too, where young people wanted a voice in the future, and were met instead with violence.

So I would say to you that with all of their potential, it screams for the chance to fulfill their basic aspirations, and that is what we have to think about, even as we make bottom-line economic choices.

So it is clear: We have a stake in each other’s success. And that’s one of the reasons why multilateral fora like APEC and ASEAN are, frankly, so important in this modern context. And it’s why we are working to complete the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations by the end of this year. TPP, which is so critical – and to emphasize how critical it is, President Obama has sent our Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, who is here sitting in the front, and our U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Mike Froman sitting over here – because we understand how critical this is.

At its core, TPP is about generating growth for our economies and jobs for our people by unleashing a wave of investment and entrepreneurship all across the Asia Pacific. And at a time when we, all of us, seek strong and sustainable growth, TPP is creating a race to the top not to the bottom. It’s reaching for the highest standards of any trade agreement in history. And I will tell you that is good for businesses, it’s good for workers, it’s good for economics, it’s good for stability, it’s good for relationships between countries.

It’s important to remember that all the impressive statistics that we cite about this region and all the exciting projections about our shared future, they’re not just an accident. APEC economies are thriving because over the last 25 years, countries of the region lowered barriers on trade and investment, and that has accelerated growth as much as any other single thing.

APEC has played a critical role in that success by helping governments to align their standards and their practices, by lowering the barriers for women to be full participants, and by making it easier for businesses to reach across borders and find new markets. But the truth is, that is not enough. That alone will not produce success. In this constantly changing marketplace, governments have a huge responsibility to become even more agile, more responsible, and even more responsive to people and to the demands of the business community.

And that means we need to listen carefully to all of you who are on the front lines making the investments, making the decisions, and doing the business of creating businesses and jobs. I want to emphasize, we in governance need you, the leaders of commerce, we need your creativity as the drivers of gatherings like APEC and like the CEO Leaders Summit. And we need you to keep pushing governments forward and urging them to adapt.

Just last night I had the privilege of having dinner with a group of the CEOs, as many of you all did, and I listened to some of them express frustration with policy makers who accept, in principle, certain notions about how we should do business, but in practice often revert to other choices, including protectionism.

Protectionism, my friends, is not a problem because it shuts someone out of the market – though that is a problem. Protectionism is a problem because it stifles opportunity, because it narrows the market, because it crushes the energy of the marketplace, where new solutions are created through that energy. And history has proven again and again, a freer market creates more opportunity, more growth, more dynamism, more innovation, and no one knows that better, I think, than the CEOs who are gathered here.

But I also want to emphasize something. You’ve heard many speakers this week celebrate the economic vitality of this region, and well they should. But I hope it’s not a secret to say to you that there is nothing automatic that says that that will be the future. Nothing automatic. The prosperity that you share today and we are witnessing today did not arrive by accident, and neither is its continuance inevitable. You know as well as anyone that capital looking for a place to invest will seek either the fastest or the safest or a combination of the two, for the return on investment, regardless of geography, regardless of nationality. Capital wants certainty in the political process, and the battle for the future is a battle about competitiveness. And part of what makes a region competitive for investors, is obviously the consistent, predictable business climate that is conducive to success.

There is no question that the most successful markets of the next 25 years will be determined in large measure by how well they demonstrate openness, transparency, inclusivity, and accountability. Now I’m not talking just about high-minded principles. I’m talking about pragmatic choices that will define this region and other regions around the world. I’m talking about a path to long term, shared prosperity.

In your businesses, you all know that connectivity and innovation are the key to success. And you know the kind of environment that you need for innovation to be able to thrive. In the United States, I’m proud to say to you – not arrogantly, but just as a matter, I think, of a reality that the key to our productivity over the last 50 years has been the freedom of this innovation. The entrepreneurial spirit that allows somebody in America to take a risk and take a chance and to find a Google or an Apple or any other number of great businesses historically. That really is what has defined America, and it’s the centerpiece of our continued growth and success, even today. The gas that we are currently using from shale is the result of new technology, of pushing that curve.

And our world-changing businesses and our world-class universities – schools like the one that drew Wishnu across the Pacific to study in Los Angeles – these are a critical component of our economic foundation. It has been proven again and again that the next innovation in technology or the next great stride in medicine is most likely to be created in countries where citizens are free to share ideas, move capital around, free to try new things, free to fail, and where the laws are clear and equitable and where you know that the profits that flow from your ideas will be protected.

In order for businesses to fully unlock the promise of the great Asia Pacific market, or to realize the potential of a booming middle class a billion people strong, we need updated rules that protect not just the basic decisions about moving goods and services, but also protect the spirit of innovation on which the economies of the future are already being built.

We need modern rules for a changing road, rules that keep pace with the speed of today’s markets. We need norms that protect us from competitive disadvantages. We need a level playing field, predictability, transparency – so that when you invest and do business, you can have a reasonable expectation of the risks and rewards in front of you. And that is one of the promises of the TPP. And as I mentioned, it is about breaking down barriers and raising the bar, the standards, in a way that protects everybody and works for everybody.

You’ve all heard American officials talk about the importance of intellectual property. But the truth is that every economy that wants to be an innovation economy needs to defend their innovators. It’s not just Americans; every entrepreneur and business in the Asia Pacific needs to know that they can reap the benefits when they develop the next big thing. Economies that can make that guarantee are inevitably going to be stronger. And those that can’t make that guarantee, if your ideas are at risk of being stolen and your innovations can be ripped off, you will never reach the full potential of that country or economy.

As you know, the Asia Pacific region is increasingly reliant on complex supply chains. Think of an iPad that is designed in California, with its parts made in Taiwan, assembled in China, shipped through Singapore, loaded with apps from Korea, and sold in Jakarta. (Laughter.) All of the businesses and investors along the way – (applause) – that must be the crowd from Jakarta. (Laughter.) But all of the businesses and investors along the way clearly need the consistency and the certainty of transparent policies and predictable regulations. And I want to recognize the cutting-edge work of APEC, which is leading on supply-chain connectivity, all the while ensuring that the rules are made with input from the public and the stakeholders like you.

And that’s why I want to pay tribute to the synergy – I really felt it last night at dinner with the group that I had dinner with. There’s a great synergy here. And I think that it would be very valuable, frankly – one of the greatest assets of this gathering is the interaction between those of us who are privileged to be leaders in our countries, and those of you who lead in the business world.

On behalf of President Obama, I would urge APEC to find more ways to increase the interaction between the leaders here and the private sector, because I think that, in the end, will result in better policy faster. Beneath the surface of the success that we celebrate though, there is also an undercurrent of concern. And I would be remiss if I didn’t say something about it.

When we talk about rules, predictability, and the sanctity of contracts, we cannot forget that corruption corrodes our markets by raising the cost of doing business, it brews uncertainty, it creates inefficiency, it undermines good governance, and it frightens away capital. Put simply, it slows down growth. It doesn’t speed it up. It doesn’t expand growth, and it certainly doesn’t meet the standards of a world that is increasingly looking for more transparency and accountability. It creates a fragile system instead of a strong one.

President Obama and I commend APEC for its close work with the private sector to develop ethics for businesses large and small. And we also commend APEC’s recent work to shine a light on money laundering and illegal trade, including wildlife trafficking. Our economies – simple, bottom-line – our economies will not reach their full potential and we will not meet the demand of all those young people looking to us for good choices, for the future. We will not do that unless we eliminate criminal enterprises that undermine the legitimacy of what we are all trying to achieve, and the rules by which we are all trying to work.

APEC can advance its efforts by continuing to build capacity among customs officials, connecting law enforcement agencies, and reducing demand. And these days, if the governments don’t step up to tackle their responsibility, guess what? Citizens will. Because with the global use of social media, everybody in the world has an instant communications tool, everybody has a camera, and increasingly where I’ve seen people hold people accountable. Pictures, videos, stories that anyone with a video can share with millions of people in milliseconds will actually help to create accountability. There is a new cop on the beat.

Finally, I want to say one last word about another value that we need to defend. And it is one that, like the others that I mentioned, will actually benefit businesses and economies, and it’s one we can only address multilaterally, and some of you may think it’s strange that the Secretary of State of the United States picks this issue to say something about here at this APEC conference, but I think it is a moral responsibility, as well as a practical business one, and that is the urgency with which we must all come together to deal with the issue of climate change.

I know that when people talk about climate change, eyes still glaze over. And against all evidence, there are still some people who wonder if it’s real – and many wonder what they can actually do about it. Well, the fact is that the absence of a concerted global commitment to address this is inviting catastrophe. And for everybody’s business, it is inviting uncertainty.

For insurance companies, it is inviting insolvency. The recent United Nations report, with its nearly unanimous conclusion that human beings are to blame for what is happening, warns us of the consequences and makes clear our responsibility. As the world’s biggest consumers of energy and the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, Pacific nations, including my own – we’re number two in the world – Pacific nations including my own have an enormous responsibility to lead a transformation that can not only save lives, but create millions of jobs.

I will just tell you, after 29 years of following this, that the extreme weather around the world – the flooding, the fires, the drought, the intense storms – are nothing compared to what will come if we don’t act. The reduction in some of our fisheries, the melt of ice, the rise of sea level, the Pacific islands that are threatened, all of this will present us with refugees such as we have never seen before, and with food shortages that may boggle the mind.

What’s astounding to me is this: Staring us in the face is an economic revolution that can solve all of this. There is a $6 trillion market out there for energy, with six billion to nine billion additional users over the next 20-40 years, and that is the marketplace of all time. The market that created the great wealth of the 1990s was a technology boom. It was a $1 trillion market, with one billion users. Compare that to the six trillion and six to nine billion users.

Energy is the solution to climate change. And the energy market is staring us in the face with an enormous amount of opportunity, and despite the amount of gas that is becoming available, we still have a responsibility, particularly those 20 major emitter nations, to deal with this issue. I think APEC understands that doing nothing is not an option, and that’s why it’s been a leader in increasing energy efficiency and reducing inefficient and market-distorting fossil fuel subsidies, and we need to continue to move in that direction. But this is a visible and tangible change in this part of the world, and tomorrow I look forward to meeting with President Yudhoyono and representatives of the Pacific Island countries and APEC leaders to talk about how we can ensure a more sustainable economic development program around us.

Yesterday, I had the chance to visit Benoa Port, where America is engaged in a public-private partnership with some fishermen here in Indonesia. And we’re engaged with universities – UCLA and three universities out here trying to build a sustainable fishery and sustainable future. These are fishermen who work for a Tampa Bay, Florida company. Fish are shipped from here every day, and it goes to Outback restaurants in America, to Walmart, and to Whole Foods. This is the world we’re living in today. But if there’s too much money chasing too few fish, and we don’t have sustainable practices, then we will obviously inherit crises beyond recognition. Sixty million people in Indonesia depend on fishing and on marine resources for their livelihood. And 60 million Indonesians get most of their protein from the sea.

So these are examples of the ways in which APEC and all of us can come together. This is the new norm. This is the future. This is the way the world is going to have to work in order to deal with these problems, but to grab the opportunities that are staring us in the face. In bringing together businesses and governments, NGOs, students, and all citizens to address these issues, APEC does the seemingly impossible: it makes one of the largest regions in the world smaller and more connected. And because APEC gives economies such an effective forum to talk about and tackle these challenges, and thanks in large part to the business leaders like you, tomorrow we will be able to innovate more imaginatively, think more freely, grow more equitably, consume more sustainably, partner more broadly, and create greater opportunities for this generation and the next. And by doing that, we will live up to our responsibilities. Thank you very, very much. (Applause.)

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

REMARKS BY DEFENSE SECRETARY HAGEL AND INDONESIAN MINISTER OF DEFENSE YUSGIANTORO

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 
Presenter: Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Indonesian Minister of Defense Purnomo Yusgiantoro August 26, 2013
Remarks by Secretary Hagel and Minister of Defense Purnomo to Indonesian troops in Jakarta, Indonesia

           MINISTER OF DEFENSE PURNOMO YUSGIANTORO: (Translator)

            Well, a very good afternoon to all of you. With us this afternoon is the secretary of defense, United States, Secretary Chuck Hagel. He arrived in Indonesia this morning, and then we paid a courtesy visit to the president, to the President Yudhoyono. With the president, we discussed a lot of things, the global issue, regional issue, and also the bilateral ties between Indonesia and U.S.



           All right. After the visit from the palace, then, we came to the ministry of defense. We had the guest of honor, due to Secretary Hagel, and then we have bilateral meetings. Many things that we discuss, how we can enhance the cooperation between U.S. and Indonesia.



           The important thing that I raise is the education and training, are things very important for you, the young officials. I think most of them, Secretary Hagel (inaudible) from the military academy, on the military academy, those young persons.



           Then since after we finish with this program, we're going to have the signing of (inaudible) letter of agreement. And then we have a press conference. And tomorrow, both of us, you know, fly to Bandar Seri Begawan to meet 10 ASEAN defense ministers' meeting and plus eight countries.



           So with this kind of introduction, I would like to ask you, Secretary Hagel, you want to say something before you discuss with this young official here. Please. The floor is yours.



           SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: Minister -- Minister Purnomo, thank you. I very much appreciate an opportunity to see you again. And as you noted, we had a very positive and productive meeting with the president a couple of hours ago.



           But I am particularly pleased and honored to have an opportunity to address all of you. You are an elite force. You have tremendously important responsibilities, as you know.



           Minister Purnomo just noted that education and training are particularly important. And many times I think in militaries that can occasionally get lost. You know, we all begin our lives and finish our lives as complete people. We are individuals first and soldiers, or whatever your profession is, second. And a professional soldier, a well-trained, well-led, well-equipped soldier, is a pride of any country.



           And it is the pride of a country because in democracies you recognize the rule of law. And you recognize your obligations are to your people and to each other and defending laws in the higher -- in the higher law of all of us, as -- as individuals.



           So I congratulate you for your professionalism. I know some of you have graduated and attended some of our military institutions in the United States. And we're very proud of you. We're proud of our graduates. We have -- as you know, many of the U.S. military people come here in not only exchanges and exercises, but we take training here. And that exchange of people-to-people, regardless of your profession, but in particular the military-to-military exchange is a very solid bridge-building mechanism for countries.



           And I just want you to know how proud we are of our militaries in the United States and what you're doing, as we work together to make a better world, to enhance peace and prosperity and security. That is your life; that is your commitment. And I do not know of a more noble profession than what you are doing on behalf of a better world.



            So, thank you. Minister, thank you for allowing me the privilege to share a few words with these magnificent soldiers. Thank you.



           MIN. PURNOMO: I just want to make sure, with Secretary Hagel, that, you know, he'll be able to -- he'll be happy to receive the Q&A, the question-and-answer from you. So feel free, you know, if you have any questions, because I believe that you were also a soldier before. You can -- you can share some of your experiences being a soldier before.



            SEC. HAGEL: Well, I'm not in the same class or category with these soldiers. I did spend two years of my life in the United States Army. I fought in Vietnam in 1968, so I have some appreciation for war and for battle and what your challenges are and your training.



           But I'm not in your class. I was a soldier for two years, but I guess if you're once a soldier, you're always a soldier, but I'm very proud of my service in the United States Army. Thank you.



           MIN. PURNOMO: (speaking foreign language) Please.



           Q: (Translator) Mr. Secretary, it is a great honor to have you among us today in Jakarta. I am (inaudible). I served in the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, 2006 and 2007, and I am currently serving as the chief of operations at the 17th Airborne Infantry Brigade, part of KOSTRAD, the Army's strategic reserve command.



           And here I'd like to inform you that I was pleased and was fortunate to be part of the IMET program, whereas I finished the advanced officers' course or the Maneuver Captain's Career Course from Fort Benning, 2011. During the six months' rigorous training, I had the opportunity to enrich my military knowledge and experience through engagement with my fellow American officers who have been deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition, I was able to interact with the local Americans and to learn about the local traditions and cultures. And I think it was a very rewarding experience for me, personally and professionally.



           And I would like to take this rare opportunity to express my great expectation as a junior TNI officer that we can enhance our cooperation of our two militaries and also to strengthen the bond of our soldiers in the future. A great example was the last -- the last joint airborne exercise, taking place in Indonesia with the 82nd Airborne Division. That event served as an effective medium of exchange, knowledge, skills and experience, but on top of it, it was the spirit of brotherhood that made that kind of exercise even more valuable.



           Therefore, I would like to recommend that we can enhance the military cooperations between the two countries by enhancing the IMET program through two sectors, just like what you have said earlier, education and training. As for education, it is so -- it will be very important for us if we can have a greater opportunity to send officers for post-graduate-level education, because it is critical to produce our very own soldier-scholars, because you want to make -- we want to develop our institution into more -- more professional, world-class military, including to produce brilliant strategic thinkers and defense practitioners.



           And the second track will be joint exercises. We can -- I'm sorry, the military courses. The military courses is very valuable, because it will help us to -- to have certain number of officers who can develop our doctrines, tactics and procedures so we can be a more developed and -- and a more joint fighting forces.



           And second track will be the joint exercises. We can enhance the existing regular joint exercises that we conduct in Indonesia, for example, the (inaudible) Shield and other trainings within our armed forces. And the second will be, if it is possible, Mr. Secretary, we can discuss this possibilities whether we can send our soldiers to train in your training ground in the U.S., so we can experience your advanced training facilities, which we believe that we can learn and acquire important lessons learned, especially in terms of military operations in urban terrain, as well as peace-making operations.



           With this, we believe that both of our militaries can enhance cooperations and to pursue our common objective, especially to preserve peace and security in this region. I thank you.

           SEC. HAGEL: Thank you. Very articulate summation of the quality of your forces represented by your words, and very wise words. And I thank you for that.



           On the specific point of the IMET, I have always believed -- and I think most of the Congress of the United States -- I know President Obama and all of the leadership of the Pentagon and the American armed forces believe strongly that the IMET program is -- is one of the smartest, best investments that the United States can make in relationships around the world, and in particular for the future. And I think you and many of your colleagues are very clear examples of that.



           The consequences of training and education hardly can be qualified, they are so important. Each of you are role models. And how you conduct yourselves, what you say, and how you lead ripple out in ways you'll probably never know. But people watch you. Your subordinates watch you. Others watch you carefully. And how you conduct yourselves is really the essence of leadership.



           And that comes through a lot of things. It comes through other role models. We each have had role models in our lives. You have them. It comes through education, through training, through the professionalization of your services. IMET does that as well as any one program I think the United States has, so you can be assured that that program is going to continue and we'll continue to enhance it. Thank you.



             MIN. PURNOMO: Well, it's time limit. We would like to thank for your presence here and thanks, Secretary Hagel, for sharing of your knowledge. And we're going to move now to the press conference in the other buildings. And, again, thank you very much. Appreciate it. (Applause.)

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