Foreign ministers from leading nations stepped up the pressure on Indonesia yesterday to accept a UN peacekeeping force for East Timor, warning that the international community could step in if it failed to agree.
The foreign ministers gathered in Auckland in New Zealand ahead of next week's heads of government meeting of the 21-member Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) forum summit.
"The main point that I hope comes out of our meetings here . . . is that the Indonesian government has a window here, in order to deal with this before the international community steps in some form or another," the US Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, told CNN.
Ms Albright said meetings planned overnight and today, including APEC countries and Britain's Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, representing the EU, would increase the pressure.
Jakarta announced that President Habibie would not attend the APEC leaders' meeting. The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Ms Jenny Shipley, said it was right for him to stay home to deal with East Timor.
Asked why the US would not lead a force into East Timor as it did into Kosovo when faced with a humanitarian crisis, Ms Albright said: "Well, we may come to that, but the bottom line here is that this has escalated rapidly."
Asked if the US would be willing to participate in East Timor with troops, Ms Albright said: "We are looking at the situation very carefully, considering our options."
Mr Cook, who broke off an Asian trip in Japan to come to New Zealand for the meeting, said: "If (Indonesia) cannot deliver security on its own, it should seek and accept that help."
The Canadian Foreign Minister, Mr Lloyd Axworthy, who is co-chairing the Auckland ministerial meeting with Mr Alexander Downer of Australia, said the discussion would be guided by the timeframes laid down on Timor by the UN Security Council.
A five-member team from the council arrived in Jakarta yesterday and started crisis talks. The council has said it is prepared to act quickly once it receives a report from the team.