Oktober 27, 2010

President Yudhoyono to return early


Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (C) and his wife Kristiani Herawati (R) attend a wreath laying ceremony at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi October 27, 2010. Yudhoyono is in Vietnam for the 17th ASEAN Summit that will take place from October 28 to 30. (Getty Images / REUTERS/Luong Thai Linh/Pool )

October 27, 2010 HANOI (KATAKAMI / THE STRAITS TIMES)  - INDONESIAN President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in Hanoi for an Asean summit, will return home early on Wednesday because of deadly natural disasters at home, an Asean source said.

'It's true. At midday' he will leave, the source told AFP.

Dr Yudhoyono arrived in Hanoi on Tuesday for an official visit with Vietnamese leaders before the summit of the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) on Thursday, and the follow-up East Asia Summit Saturday with six regional partner nations.

A 7.7-magnitude quake that struck late on Monday near the Mentawai Islands off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami that has killed at least 112 people and left hundreds more missing.

Another 25 people have died on Java island after the Mount Merapi volcano erupted. --


AFP