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Indonesia Warns U.S. of War Between West and Rest of World
JAKARTA, Oct 17 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The security minister of the world's most populous Muslim country warned Wednesday that the U.S.-led attacks on Afghanistan could spark a general conflagration between the West and the rest of the world.
"Indonesia is very concerned and worried,'' said Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Coordinating Minister for Political and Security.
"If this conflict widens, then many countries will be destabilized. This will create a new unwanted conflict, for example the West against non-Western countries, the United States versus the rest of the world."
The clash of civilizations could be inevitable in view of the situation in the Southeast Asian (ASEAN) region, observers said on Wednesday.
Susilo said that Indonesia fully supports efforts to fight terrorism, but the use of such excessive force would be counterproductive, fearing the conflict would spawn wider discord "between the West and non-Western countries."
If that happens, Susilo remarked, "then world peace will be directly or indirectly threatened."
He revealed that President Megawati Sukarnoputri has instructed him to send special envoys to Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, to seek a peaceful solution to the crisis.
On Sunday, Megawati, under pressure from a coalition of Muslim political parties, said that no nation has the right to attack another.
But she stopped short of withdrawing Indonesia's support for the U.S.-led international "war on terrorism". Washington, however, brushed off Megawati's remarks. ABC Australia on Tuesday reported that the U.S. insists the best defense against terrorism is "a strong offense".
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said that Indonesia needs to remember and understand that U.S. territory was brutally attacked, and that the U.S. has every right to take all steps it deems necessary to defend itself. Fleischer also denied that global support for U.S. reprisals was eroding.
A wave of anti-American protests that engulfed Indonesia after the start of the bombing campaign has abated in recent days.
But some newspapers have begun taking a hardline stance against the United States.
On Wednesday, one daily, Berita Kota, said "Bush is like Hitler,'' in a front-page headline, saying the two men were both intent on slaughtering innocent civilians.
Meanwhile, Megawati has been urged to take a stronger stance against the U.S. bombing of Afghans and the killing of innocents in the country.
A former ambassador in Indonesia urged Megawati to adopt a tougher and more explicit stance against the United States-led air strikes against the Taliban and the al-Qaeda terrorist network.
Former Indonesian Ambassador to Washington, Hasnan Habib, urged the President to explicitly call for an end to the attacks in Afghanistan.
The president "should formalize her criticism," Hasnan said.
"I think the U.S. has destroyed all the military targets. If the attack continues, civilians could become victims," Hasnan told
The Jakarta Post Tuesday.
With additional reporting by Kazi Mahmood
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