page_title: Indonesian occupation of East Timor
section_title: United States
hierarchical_section_title: Indonesian occupation of East Timor / International response / United States
caption_attribution_description: English: R-L: Adam Malik, Suharto, Gerald Ford, Henry Kissinger. Head to Head Meeting with President Suharto and Foreign Affairs Minister Malik of Republic of Indonesia on President's Far Eastern Trip, sitting on sofas in front of large carved teak wall sculpture telling story of the culture. 1975, December 6 – Jepara Room, Istana Merdeka (Credential Hall) – Jakarta, Indonesia. A7504-07 600dpi scan from Original Negative.
context_page_description: The Indonesian occupation of East Timor began in December 1975 and lasted until October 1999. After centuries of Portuguese colonial rule in East Timor, a 1974 coup in Portugal led to the decolonisation of its former colonies, creating instability in East Timor and leaving its future uncertain. After a small-scale civil war, the pro-independence Fretilin declared victory in the capital city of Dili and declared an independent East Timor on 28 November 1975.
  Claiming that its assistance had been requested by East Timorese leaders, Indonesian military forces invaded East Timor on 7 December 1975, and by 1979 they had all but destroyed the armed resistance to the occupation. Following a controversial "Popular Assembly" which many said was not a genuine act of self-determination, Indonesia declared the territory a province of Indonesia.
  Immediately after the invasion, the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council passed resolutions condemning Indonesia's actions in East Timor and calling for its immediate withdrawal from the territory.
context_section_description: In 1975, the United States was completing a retreat from Vietnam. A staunchly anti-communist Indonesia was considered by the United States to be an essential counterweight, and friendly relations with the Indonesian government were considered more important than a decolonisation process in East Timor. The United States also wanted to maintain its access to deep water straits running through Indonesia for undetectable submarine passage between the Indian and Pacific oceans.
  On the day before the invasion, US President Gerald R. Ford and US Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger met with Indonesian president Suharto and reportedly gave their approval for the invasion. In response to Suharto saying "We want your understanding if it was deemed necessary to take rapid or drastic action [in East Timor]."  Ford replied, "We will understand and will not press you on the issue. We understand the problem and the intentions you have." Kissinger similarly agreed, though he had fears that the use of U.S.-made arms in the invasion would be exposed to public scrutiny, talking of their desire to "influence the reaction in America" so that "there would be less chance of people talking in an unauthorised way." The US also hoped the invasion would be swift and not involve protracted resistance. "It is important that whatever you do succeeds quickly," Kissinger said to Suharto.
  The U.S. supplied weapons to Indonesia during the invasion and the subsequent occupation. A week after the invasion of East Timor, the National Security Council prepared an analysis which found widespread use of US-supplied military equipment. Although the US government said they would delay new arms sales from December 1975 to June 1976 pending a review by the State Department to determine whether Indonesia had violated a bilateral agreement stipulating that Indonesia could only use U.S.-supplied arms for defensive purposes, military aid continued to flow, and Kissinger chastised members of his State Department staff for suggesting arms sales be cut. Kissinger was worried about reactions to his policies from the U.S. public, including the Congress, deploring that "Everything on paper will be used against me". Between 1975 and 1980, when the violence in East Timor was at its climax, the United States furnished approximately $340 million in weaponry to the Indonesian government.
  US military aid and arms sales to Indonesia increased from 1974 and continued through to the Bush and Clinton years until it was stopped in 1999. US arms provisions to Indonesia between 1975 and 1995 amounted to approximately $1.1 billion. The Clinton administration, under the Pentagon's JCET program, trained the Indonesian Kopassus special forces in urban guerrilla warfare, surveillance, counter-intelligence, sniper tactics and 'psychological operations'.
  The UN's Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor (CAVR) stated in the "Responsibility" chapter of its final report that US "political and military support were fundamental to the Indonesian invasion and occupation" of East Timor between 1975 and 1999.
  The report (p. 92) also stated that "U.S. supplied weaponry was crucial to Indonesia's capacity to intensify military operations from 1977 in its massive campaigns to destroy the Resistance in which aircraft supplied by the United States played a crucial role."
  Fretilin has claimed that the degree of US support for the Indonesian government's efforts in East Timor may have extended beyond that of diplomatic support and material assistance. 
  A UPI report from Sydney, Australia dated 19 June 1978, quoted a Fretilin press release, which stated: "American military advisers and mercenaries fought alongside Indonesian soldiers against FRETILIN in two battles ... In the meantime, American pilots are flying OV-10 Bronco aircraft for the Indonesian Air Force in bombing raids against the liberated areas under FRETILIN control."
  The United States abstained from most of the UN resolutions censuring the Indonesian invasion. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the US Ambassador to the UN at the 
caption: US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and President Gerald Ford discussed East Timor with President Suharto one day before the invasion.[222]
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