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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002820 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/24/2016 
TAGS: MARR MASS PREL PGOV PTER PHUM ID
SUBJECT: ADMIRAL FALLON'S MEETING WITH MINISTER WIDODO 
 
 
Classified By: POLITICAL OFFICER DAVID WILLIS FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) and ( 
D). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary.  Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral 
William J. Fallon, met with Indonesian Coordinating Minister 
for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Widodo A.S. on 
February 23.  He emphasized the importance to the United 
States of restored mil-mil relations with Indonesia.  Both 
leaders shared their interest in overcoming past difficulties 
to create a lasting relationship.  Widodo noted Indonesia's 
commitment to military reform and counterterrorism and 
encouraged educational opportunities in the U.S. for the 
Indonesian military.  Admiral Fallon expressed U.S. support 
for CT efforts among Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines 
in the triborder area.  To handle the issue, Widodo said the 
three countries had formed a special CT network and that 
Indonesia had hosted a January meeting in Manado, Sulawesi. 
End Summary. 
 
Rebuilding Mil-Mil Relations 
---------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Coordinating Minister Widodo began the February 23 
meeting by expressing the Indonesian Government's 
appreciation for the U.S. decision to lift military 
assistance restrictions and normalize relations with 
Indonesia's armed forces (TNI).  He characterized this as the 
start of a new era in U.S. - Indonesia bilateral relations 
and viewed identifying the next steps as among his 
responsibilities.  Admiral Fallon described U.S. relations 
with Indonesia as of the utmost importance and noted the 
opportunity for Jakarta to demonstrate to Washington that the 
TNI had moved beyond its checkered past by marking 
accomplishments in areas of mutual concern, such as 
counterterrorism. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Widodo, a retired TNI Armed Forces Chief and the 
only Navy Admiral to ever hold the position, extolled the 
benefits he had personally witnessed of TNI Navy interaction 
with PACOM elements and said such engagement could help 
return relations to prior levels.  Admiral Fallon said the 
relationship could even reach higher levels and added that 
the Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Admiral Roughead, 
was planning to visit Indonesia in March to meet with TNI 
Navy Admirals to further identify ways to enhance relations. 
 
¶4. (C) Long term educational opportunities in the United 
States for TNI officers were suggested by Widodo as a 
necessary programmatic element to enhance TNI professionalism 
and deepen TNI experience with the culture, values, and 
systems of the U.S. armed forces.  Later, when program 
participants achieved more strategic positions in their 
career, they could rely on their previous U.S. educational 
experience to approach the bilateral relationship.  Admiral 
Fallon agreed with the importance of joint educational 
experiences and with incorporating such programs into the 
relationship.  In addition, the Admiral suggested 
shorter-term educational opportunities for TNI officers also 
could be arranged.  As a second item of interest, Widodo said 
the GOI was impressed by the speed of the U.S. military's 
post-tsunami disaster response and was interested in building 
a similar TNI capacity. 
 
GOI Commitment to Reforms and Counterterrorism 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶5. (SBU) In a lengthy explanation of Indonesia's political 
landscape, Widodo said TNI reform was a sincere priority for 
both political and military leaders and included both 
cultural and structural changes.  The GOI remained committed 
to democratization and creating a healthy political and 
security environment to enable the country to fully recover 
economically from the 1997-98 economic crisis.  The internal 
government anti-corruption effort was another important step 
that eventually would ensure the entire GOI budget is used as 
intended and that economic development items are fully funded. 
 
¶6. (C) Widodo admitted Indonesia faced a serious terrorist 
threat and said the GOI was committed to developing a policy 
that incorporated law enforcement and ideological components 
that would attract both political support and public 
participation.  International assistance, he said, was 
essential for Indonesia's CT efforts.  The GOI was moving to 
elevate his Ministry's CT Coordination Desk to a 
ministry-level agency, but a number of steps remained before 
 
JAKARTA 00002820  002 OF 002 
 
 
that body was able to coordinate the interagency CT effort. 
Admiral Fallon added that the democratic principles shared by 
the U.S. and Indonesia made cooperation against the common 
terrorist threat a natural step.  The Admiral told Widodo 
that PACOM's Joint Interagency Taskforce - West (JIATF-West) 
was looking at adapting its counternarcotics work to 
counterterrorism, and that a JIATF-West officer was currently 
in Jakarta and available for discussions.  Widodo welcomed 
the Admiral's invitation to an upcoming PACOM-sponsored 
symposium in Bangkok to facilitate sharing experiences of 
developing an integrated and coordinated CT approach. 
 
¶7. (C) Admiral Fallon expressed U.S. interest in facilitating 
CT cooperation in the triborder area among Indonesia, 
Malaysia, and the Philippines, and was urging the Philippine 
military to increase pressure on terrorists in Mindanao.  The 
Admiral encouraged Indonesia and Malaysia to likewise 
increase vigilance in that border area and offered U.S. 
assistance in the effort.  Widodo said the GOI was aware the 
terror threat in the triborder area and he used a wall map of 
the region to identify the routes most frequently used 
northward from Sulawesi and East Kalimantan.  In response to 
the threat, Widodo said the three countries had developed a 
special intelligence network, and that Indonesia had hosted a 
meeting in January in Manado, Sulawesi. 
 
¶8. (U) Admiral Fallon has cleared this message. 
PASCOE