Southeast Asian nations have signed a declaration today with US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell to fight militant networks.
Foreign ministers from the 10 Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the US pledged in the declaration to share intelligence, block terrorist funds, tighten borders and make it tougher to use forged travel papers.
The agreement binds Southeast Asia and the US in a framework “to prevent, disrupt and combat international terrorism”.
The signing caps week-long talks that focused on battling terrorism amid concerns Indonesia is not doing enough to root out militants across its vast archipelago.
Mr Powell, who heads to Jakarta tonight, said earlier this week he was carrying ideas and initiatives to help President Ms Megawati Sukarnoputri fight militancy at home and hinted that Washington was ready to consider military cooperation.
The US cut military ties with Jakarta, including officer training and arms sales, in 1999 when the Indonesian military was implicated in violence in East Timor after the territory voted for independence.
This week Singapore and the Philippines urged the United States to restore military ties with Indonesia.
Indonesia has defended its record in fighting terrorism, saying it had arrested suspected terrorists but that it was wrong to equate radical groups with terrorists.