UPDATE - Indonesia suspends military cooperation with Australia

UPDATES WITH MINISTER'S COMMENTS

By Ainur Rohmah

TUBAN, Indonesia (AA) - Indonesia has decided to temporarily suspend military cooperation with Australia over material deemed offensive to the Southeast Asian country’s principles, according to officials Wednesday.

Indonesian army spokesman Maj. Gen. Wuryanto -- who like many Indonesians uses one name -- cited "technical problems" as the reason for the suspension but refused to provide further details.

He was quoted by detik.com as saying that the “technical” matter was related to bilateral relations.

The Kompas daily reported Wednesday that an Indonesian special guard instructor visiting a training facility in Perth, Australia, had seen laminated “material” considered insulting toward Indonesia’s national principle of “Pancasila” -- under which the country’s diverse ethnicities and religions are unified.

Kompas also referred to another incident in which a member of the special guard found teaching materials at military headquarters in Australia deemed to offend Indonesia’s military.

Wuryanto said Wednesday that the suspension of cooperation went into effect in mid-December and applied to all forms of cooperation “including joint training, education, exchange of officers and visits".

He told Kompas that Indonesia had expressed its objections to Australia’s military command and its neighbor had responded by promising to evaluate all technical cooperation as well as the material in question.

Meanwhile, Defense minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said he believed that the Australian government had not intended to insult Indonesia, underlining the positive relations between the sides.

Referring to a meeting scheduled with his Australian counterpart later this month to discuss the continuation of military cooperation, he underlined that it was aimed at "maintaining good relations between the two countries".

Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne said in a statement that an investigation into the matter "is being finalised".

She said that said Australia's government is working with Indonesia "to restore full co-operation as soon as possible", according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The incident is not the first time that military cooperation between the countries has been suspended.

In November 2013, the Indonesian Ministry of Defense announced similar measures following allegations that Australian intelligence had tapped the phones of former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, his wife and eight of his ministers.