RI Leader's Presence Necessary In International Forums

Kyoto, Sept 29 (Antara) - The presence of an Indonesian leader in international forums is necessary and strategic for upholding the national interests, stated President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. "Besides this, it affirms the pivotal position of Indonesia, both at the regional and global levels," President Yudhoyono noted in Washington DC on Saturday morning before leaving for Japan. The Indonesian head of state remarked that international duty was important, and it comes second only to national duty as the foreign policy is the continuation of the domestic policy. But, he emphasized that the Indonesian leader should be selective and not necessarily attend all international meetings as several of them are held every year. "Even I must be selective to pick which international meeting I have to attend. For instance, it is not permissible for an Indonesian leader to not attend the ASEAN summit or APEC summit because the Bogor declaration is the spirit of that meeting," Yudhoyono pointed out. He affirmed that besides participating in the ASEAN and APEC summits, the Indonesian leader should also attend the G-20 summit and the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC). "I have been selective, so far, to decide which international meeting I have to attend, but later it will be up to the next president," Yudhoyono added.