Top US Official To Visit Brunei

Bandar Seri Begawan - Mr Eric John, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, United States Department of State will be in Brunei on a working visit from Feb 11 to 13.

The Deputy Assistant Secretary of State has been appointed to his post since June last year and in his capacity is responsible for US relations with Southeast Asian countries and with ASEAN. Previously he was the Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the US Embassy in Seoul.

The visit to Brunei will be the first by the Deputy Assistant Secretary and his itinerary throughout the visit will include meetings with various government officials.

Meanwhile AP report from Singapore stated: Eric John on Friday praised Indonesia and Malaysia for their handling of the controversy over caricatures of Islam's Prophet Muhammad, and said the two countries proved that Islam and democracy were compatible.

"The protests dissipated fairly quickly and there was a public discussion of it," said Mr John.

At a briefing with reporters, Mr. John said Indonesia and Malaysia, which have Muslim majorities, were voices of moderation and that their democracies proved that Muslims can "flourish" in such apolitical system. "The controversy has shown that democracy and Islam are compatible," he said. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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