VZCZCXRO7000
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #2189 2221001
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 101001Z AUG 07
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5747
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 0654
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 4201
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 0994
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 4123
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC

UNCLAS JAKARTA 002189 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/MTS AND EB/IFD/ODF 
TREASURY FOR TFCA - BERG 
DEPARTMENT FOR OES/IET and OES/ETC 
AMEMBASSY BEIJING PLEASE PASS TO CEQ CONNAUGHTON 
 
E.O. 12598: N/A 
TAGS: SENV EAID ECON ENRG PGOV ID
SUBJECT: ENVIRONMENT MINISTER WITOELAR WELCOMES U.S. ENGAGEMENT ON 
CLIMATE CHANGE 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  Minister of Health Rachmat Witoelar told the 
Ambassador on August 9 that he welcomed President Bush's climate 
change initiative and the upcoming conference on climate change in 
Washington, DC.  He welcomed opportunities for dialogue, such as the 
upcoming visit of White House Council on Environmental Quality 
Chairman James Connaughton.  The Minister hopes that Presidents Bush 
and Yudhoyono (SBY) will discuss climate change at September's Asia 
Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Sydney.  The 
Ambassador affirmed the U.S. desire to participate constructively at 
COP-13.  End Summary. 
 
September Climate Change Conference and COP-13 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶2. (SBU) The Minister expressed appreciation for U.S. engagement and 
leadership on climate change, including the recent announcement of 
the September 27-28 "Conference on Energy Security and Climate 
Change" in Washington, DC.  Confirming that Indonesia will attend, 
he said that the Government of Indonesia (GOI) has not yet 
determined the composition of its delegation to the conference, but 
that he expected to be part of it.  The Minister expressed 
confidence that President Bush's initiative will provide 
opportunities for serious dialogue on climate change prior to the 
COP-13 conference in December.  He stated that this initiative might 
help pressure countries like Russia, China, and India to engage 
constructively at COP-13. 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Minister welcomed the August 15-16 visit to Indonesia 
of CEQ Chairman James L. Connaughton and Senior Climate Change 
Negotiator Harlan Watson.  He termed it an opportunity to discuss 
the substantive agenda of both the September conference as well as 
the December COP-13 conference in Bali.  He acknowledged that 
hosting a successful COP-13 (Minister Witoelar will chair the 
conference) will be a challenge, and welcomed any opportunities for 
countries to discuss their respective positions beforehand so that 
the basis for a consensus might emerge by December.  The Minister 
hoped that Presidents Bush and SBY would discuss the environment and 
climate change at September's Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation 
(APEC) meetings in Sydney. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The Ambassador noted that the U.S. wants to participate 
constructively at COP-13. He pointed out that the U.S. already 
contributes to a number of conservation and environment programs in 
Indonesia.  The Ambassador and the Minister pledged to cooperate in 
the months leading up to COP-13. 
 
September 10 Climate Change Workshop 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶5. (U) The Minister informed the Ambassador that the GOI, the Pew 
Center on Global Climate Change, and Yayasan Pelangi Indonesia (a 
local environmental NGO), will hold a one-day workshop in Jakarta on 
September 10 to educate Indonesian stakeholders about Indonesian and 
U.S. perspectives on climate change.  He also welcomed USG 
participation and any potential financial support for the workshop. 
The Ambassador promised to explore this possibility. 
 
HUME