Few clues to Jakarta meeting agenda

Howard was the first world leader to visit Megawati after she assumed power

By CNN's Grant Holloway

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- The leaders of Indonesia and Australia will make a fresh attempt to improve their sometimes tempestuous relationship Wednesday, but political observers expect there will be little immediate progress to report.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard will meet with Indonesia's President Megawati Sukarnoputri in a flood-stricken Jakarta, with the pressing issues of international security and cross-border crime expected to top the agenda.

But neither side is giving much away in terms of what exactly will be discussed and what diplomatic outcomes are to be expected.

For example, Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda is reported as saying earlier this week that illegal immigration was not on the leaders' agenda because it was a regional issue rather than one between Indonesia and Australia.

Howard, for his part, commented in New York at the weekend that: "I would expect all of the things that should be covered in such a meeting (with Megawati) to be covered."

"I'm not going to specify now what they are or what they might include or not include," he is reported saying.

COUNTRY PROFILE At a glance: Australia Provided by CountryWatch.com

That's as maybe, but it is precisely the issue of illegal immigration -- prompted by Australia's decision last August to turn away a Norwegian freighter carry asylum seekers rescued from Indonesian waters -- that has been the source of the latest frost between the Pacific neighbors.

COUNTRY PROFILE At a glance: Indonesia Provided by CountryWatch.com    CNN.com Asia More news from our Asia edition

Howard earned Indonesia's wrath by commenting publicly about Indonesia's responsibilities in the matter before talking to Megawati or any senior foreign officials.

He also saw fit to "lecture" Indonesia on its responsibilities to combat global terrorism following the September 11 attacks in the United States.

Megawati responded by refusing to take any of Howard's subsequent phone calls on the matter and by rejecting any attempts at a one-on-one meeting between the two leaders at the APEC forum in Shanghai, China, a few months later.

Wirajuda accused the Australian government of ''megaphone diplomacy" over the incident, and it is clear that many Indonesian movers and shakers are not yet ready to forgive and forget.

The speaker of the Peoples' Consultative Assembly, Amien Rais, for example, has pulled out of Wednesday's meeting with Howard, reportedly blaming Australia's stance on asylum seekers and supposed support for independence for the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya.

Rais is clearly playing to his domestic audience however by snubbing Howard, as Australia is on record many times as supporting Indonesia's territorial integrity in Irian Jaya.

Howard has said he is "disappointed" at the Rais's decision -- and suggested he had played fast and loose with the reasons given for the cancellation.

Regardless of the motives, the incident highlights the fragile nature of the relationship.

People smuggling is not the only sore point.

Civil dialogue

Many Indonesians are still smarting from Australia's decision in 1999 to lead an international peace-enforcement mission to East Timor, where pro-Jakarta militias had launched a rampage of violence.

The long-term future and security of East Timor following its independence in May this year, is of tantamount importance to both Australia and Indonesia.

For that reason alone, despite the hiccups, both nations realize the importance of maintaining a civil dialogue.

Howard was the first international leader to visit Megawati following her elevation to president after the demise Abdurrahim Wahid last year.

Foreign Minister Wirajuda has also visited Canberra after the Tampa incident in an attempt to mend fences.