Indonesia defends allowing visit of Sudanese leader

Indonesia defended Monday its decision to allow Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir into the country for a summit of Muslim nations. The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for al-Bashir in 2009 and 2010 because of suspected involvement in crimes against humanity, specific war crimes and genocide. The charges stem from reported atrocities in the conflict in Darfur.

Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir said Indonesia is not an ICC member state and has no legal mechanism or obligation to arrest al-Bashir. "It is a matter between him and the ICC, not the question of Indonesia," he said. The U.S. Embassy in Jakarta said it was "concerned" by al-Bashir's travel to Indonesia for a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Like Indonesia, the U.S. is not a party to the Rome Statute treaty that established the ICC. Indonesian President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo met with al-Bashir during the summit.

Indonesian officials said the two discussed solidarity with Palestine and deeper economic ties. Last year, al-Bashir reportedly canceled a trip to an Asia-Africa conference in Jakarta after protests by rights groups.