President Yudhoyono meets Japanese PM Hatoyama

SBY PRESIDENCY

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono held a bilateral meeting with the new Japanese PM Yukio Hatoyama at Royal Dusit Thani hotel in Hua Hin, Thailand, Saturday morning.

In the 40-minute meeting, the two leaders discussed increased cooperation and friendship between the two countries.

http://img.antara.co.id/stockphotos/peristiwa/20091023140805-sidangkabinet-p231009-2.jpg

Indonesia and Japan established diplomatic relations 50 years ago.

The meeting may also take up Japan`s role in the reconstruction of Padang city, West Sumatra, following the strong quake which struck the province on September 30, 2009.

Besides, Yudhoyono and Hatoyama will also discuss the multilateralization of the Chiang Mai Initiative under the ASEAN+3 cooperation.

Hatoyama had been installed as the new Japanese prime minister on September 15, 2009, after his great victory in beating the Democratic Liberal Party (LDP) in the last 50 years.

President Yudhoyono was sworn for the second time as Indonesia`s president on October 20, 2009.

Later President Yudhoyono on Sunday at 9 a.m attended the 4th summit of East Asian leaders comprising the ten ASEAN countries, Japan, South Korea, China, India, Australia, and New Zealand.

Then the heads of state and government will attend a working lunch with leaders of East Asian countries.

At 2 p.m local time, President Yudhoyono was scheduled to attend the concluding ceremony of the 15th ASEAN summit, marked with the signing of two documents, namely a declaration of Asean leaders on the formation of an Asean intergovernmental human rights commission, and an educational cooperation under the framework of the Asean community of 2015.

The 15th ASEAN summit also issued a joint statement on Asean inter relations comprising 57 points, and on the climate change in facing the climate change summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December 2009.

The closing ceremony would still be followed by a meeting also to be attended by President Yudhoyono, namely the summit of the leaders of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines (BIMP)-East Asia Growth Area (EAGA).

And on Sunday afternoon, the President is scheduled to attend a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The Presidential entourage which included the First Lady, was scheduled to leave Hua Hin on Monday at 10 a.m and scheduled to arrive back home at 1.55 p.m local time.(ANTARA News)