Wuryanto said the Indonesian military sent a letter to the
Australian Defence Force on December 9 notifying them of the suspension.
Indonesia said Wednesday it has
suspended military cooperation with Australia, reportedly due to
training materials deemed offensive, in a fresh flare-up of tensions
between the neighbours.
Cooperation
including military exercises and education and exchange programmes were
put on hold last month, said Indonesian military spokesman Wuryanto.
"Military cooperation with Australian forces has been suspended temporarily due to technical matters," the spokesman, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told AFP.
Indonesian
newspaper Kompas said it came after an instructor from Indonesia's
special forces found training materials he thought were disrespectful
towards his country and armed forces at an Australian academy during an
exchange programme.
Wuryanto refused to confirm this, saying only that the suspension was due to several problems.
The neighbours are key allies but the relationship has had many ups and downs.
Ties sank to their lowest level in years under former Australian premier Tony Abbott due
to rows about Jakarta's execution of Australian drug smugglers and
Canberra's hardline policy of turning migrant boats back to Indonesia.
Indonesia
had previously suspended military exercises with Australia, in 2013,
due to allegations that Australian spies tried to tap the phone of then
Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, but they resumed the
following year.
Wuryanto said the
Indonesian military sent a letter to the Australian Defence Force on
December 9 notifying them of the suspension.
"Hopefully the problem will be resolved soon," he said, adding that the Indonesian military was still in communication with the Australian forces.
It
was the first serious row between the neighbours for some time, with
relations having improved since Malcolm Turnbull became Australia's
leader in 2015.
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