Indonesia backs East Timor's ASEAN membership

Indonesia backs East Timor's ASEAN membership

2011-01-17 08:31:53 GMT+7 (ICT)

JAKARTA, INDONESIA (BNO NEWS) -- Indonesia on Sunday expressed its support of East Timor's bid to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), local media reported.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said the country "openly supports" East Timor's wish to join ASEAN, which currently has 10 members, Indonesia's state-run media Antara news agency reported.

Even though no official application has been submitted, Natalegawa said he had heard that East Timor would begin processing it this year to follow the ASEAN membership stages.

In addition, Natalegawa said Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had also expressed support for the country's bid as Indonesian ambassador to ASEAN Ngurah Swajaya said that according to ASEAN requirements, East Timor could become a valid candidate.

ASEAN members currently include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam.

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