TNI, National Police guarantee security for foreign assets

The Armed Forces (TNI) and National Police said Tuesday they would take measures to anticipate adverse impacts of possible U.S.-led military attack on Iraq.

?Surely, we have to take anticipatory measures. We have to anticipate any impacts of possible military attack on Iraq by the US and its allies,? said TNI Commander Gen Endriartono Sutarto in the presence of National Police Chief Gen Da?i Bachtiar.

Endriartono said TNI and the police had not increased the number of troops to protect vital assets of US companies like oil and gas producer ExxonMobil in Aceh and copper and gold mining firm PT Freeport Indonesia in Papua.

He said however that they would carefully monitor the development of possible war in Iraq before stepping up their measures to protect the assets.

Da?i Bachtiar said the police had taken special measures to protect assets of American and British companies in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Freeport Indonesia?s spokesperson Siddharta Moersjid told Petromindo.Com Wednesday that they had received assurances from the government that their operations were secure. (*)