President Communicates with PM Abbot on MH17 Airplane

Jakarta (Antara) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday had a telephonic conversation with Australian Prime Minister, Tony Abbot, regarding several issues, including the crashed Malaysia Airlines MH17. The presidential special aide for international affairs Teuku Faizasyah said in a text message to Antara here on Friday that President Yudhoyono had received a phone call from Prime Minister Tony Abbot. Regarding Malaysia Airlines MH17 tragedy, President Yudhoyono said that he had also talked with Malaysian Prime Minister and Dutch King Willem-Alexander on Tuesday afternoon on the downing of the airplane in eastern Ukraine. President Yudhoyono, on the occasion, expressed his appreciation on the role of Australia as the nonpermanent member of the UN Security Council in issuing several resolutions related to MH17 plane. "Tony Abbot had offered assistance to transport the remains of the MH17 passengers to Indonesia by Australian aircraft," Faizasyah said. Meanwhile, President Yudhoyono, according to Faizasyah, thanked Tony Abbot on his offer and said that Indonesia had arranged the returning of the bodies with flag carrier Garuda Indonesia. The talks between President Yudhoyono and Prime Minister Abbot also touched on the topic of bilateral ties. "In particular, PM Abbot conveyed appreciation for the President Yudhoyono's leadership to advance bilateral relations and the role of Indonesia in international forums. Abbot mentioned that President Yudhoyono is a good friend of Australia," Faizasyah added. In the meantime, the six-member Indonesian police's DVI team had arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday to help identify the victims of the MH17 plane, which included 12 Indonesians. (*) Reported by Panca Hari Prabowo